History

I started the website in June 2002 as nothing more than a place to post capoeira pictures online for my friends and family to see them.

After taking my first trip to Brazil in 2004, I got the idea to begin translating texts about capoeira from Portuguese to English. I remember that when I was beginning capoeira, I was frustrated with the unavailability/inaccessibility of quality capoeira information, since virtually all of it was written and published in Brazil. At the time, there were only three capoeira books published in English (a situation which has since changed).

So I began to translate articles and book excerpts, drawing heavily from the website of Mestre Decânio (with his permission and blessing) as well as other sources. The site moved to shadowcatcapoeira.com in May 2005 and continued to grow, reaching over 20,000 visitors.

In January 2007 I re-organized the site’s content and moved to its current address. I hope to continue translating, publishing, and spreading knowledge about capoeira to the English-speaking world. Enjoy the site… but remember that capoeira is learned in the roda, not on the Internet – so quit reading and go train!

The capoeirista behind the website

My capoeira journey began on September 10, 2001, in the Hamilton College Capoeira Club. We practiced a contemporary style of capoeira without affiliation to any official group or mestre. The club was led by a capoeirista named Roberto, who taught for free. I spent four years training in the Hamilton club, though I visited and played with many other groups whenever I had the opportunity to travel.

Capoeira led me to study abroad in Brazil in spring of 2004, spending time in both Fortaleza and Salvador. I trained with Mestre Marrom of Grupo União, Mestre Valmir of FICA, Mestre Dinho of Topázio, and Mestre Gajé of the Mercado Modelo.

In September of 2005, I moved to southeastern Brazil and began to train capoeira angola with Treinel Daniel of the Academia de João Pequeno de Pastinha, under Mestre Pé de Chumbo. Finally, I moved to Salvador, Bahia in July 2006 and trained with FICA (International Capoeira Angola Foundation) under Mestre Valmir. I returned to my home state of Connecticut in December 2006.