Legs kicked and hips twisted as two people jumped, ducked and swayed to rhythmic singing and the strong beats of a tambourine-like instrument.  A circle of eight people enclosed the two in the center who combined martial arts, dance and acrobatics as they moved fluidly in tandem.  These people are doing capoeira (kap-oo-AIR-uh), a Brazilian moving art form practiced by Western’s Capoeira Club.  

Ten club members showcased their skills at the Latino Student Union's Latino Heritage Dinner, their first performance since the club's formation last fall.

Capoeira originated from African slaves brought to Brazil hundreds of years ago, said Matteo Tamburini, a Western graduate student and club member.  Tamburini first learned of capoeira as an undergraduate when he went to Brazil as part of a study abroad program.  

The Portuguese music capoeiristas perform echo themes of struggle and freedom, topics that were very personal to African slaves, Tamburini said.  Three instruments are typically played, the berimbau, which resembles an archer’s bow, a drum called an atabaque, and the pandeiro, a tambourine-like instrument.  

During a capoeira performance, some of the capoeiristas stand in a circle singing and playing instruments, while two go into the center of the circle and “play.”  The play is a non-combative type of fighting in which kicks, rolls, jumps, dodges, cartwheels and other acrobatic, martial arts and dance-like moves are performed.  One of the members of the circle can cut in and replace one of the two players at any time.  

Some members of the club have been practicing capoeira for years while others for only a few weeks.  The club meets twice per week at the Ridgeway Commons martial arts room to learn new moves and to practice ones they already know.  

People of all skill levels are invited to participate, even if they have never practiced capoeira before, said Bellingham resident Ben Lockwood, one of the club’s founding members.  

Lockwood first began learning capoeira when he was a student at the University of Iowa, where he took a capoeira class as a physical education requirement.  Lockwood said he was hesitant to take up capoeira at first but began to like it after a few practices and saw himself improving.  

Lockwood then lived in Alaska until last August when he moved to Bellingham and began looking for people with whom he could practice capoeira.

He put an ad on the Web site craigslist.com and a Western student responded.  Lockwood said he practiced with this student at Whatcom Falls Park until last fall when they decided to form a capoeira club with Western’s Associated Students.

“It seemed like a great opportunity to find more people who would be interested in capoeira," Lockwood said.  
Since the formation of the club, the membership and participation has increased to approximately 10 to 14 people, Lockwood said.

Lockwood, Western sophomore Bill Boyle and senior Matt Matzinger all said they weren’t very confident going into the performance at the heritage dinner.  

“I was really nervous, but I think it turned out to be a pretty solid first performance,” Lockwood said.  

Boyle said he has been practicing with the club for a few weeks and finds capoeira interesting and fun to do.  After hearing about it from a friend, he and his roommate decided to join the club.

Western freshman Emily Irwin practiced capoeira for approximately three years in Hawaii, where she lived before she came to Western.  In Hawaii, capoeira is taught at many schools by capoeira masters known as mestres, she said.

“I was surprised when I came to Western and almost no one knew what capoeira was because there are so many schools of it in Hawaii,” Irwin said.  

Irwin said she enjoys practicing capoeira because it is different from any other kind of exercise or sport.  In Hawaii, capoeira is known more of as a game than a sport or martial art, Irwin said.  

There, anyone who practices capoeira is associated with a school.  At the school, instructors teach the moves and techniques of the game and participants can earn different colored belts associated with different skill levels.

“The goal is not to hurt people,” Irwin said.  “It is very friendly and fun.  The people you play with at your school are like an extension of your family.”

Lockwood said he likes practicing capoeira because it is very creative.  The movements are never in a specified order so capeoiristas must improvise every move.  It is also a great form of exercise, he said.  

“The thing to remember about capoeira is to always smile,” Lockwood said.  “It’s non-combative.  Even if you don’t do something exactly right, still smile.  When we practice it, we’re playing.  It’s not as hard as it looks.  I’ve seen people of all sizes and skills do it.” 

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