It’s carnival time in Rio. Exuberant, nightmarish carnival clowns known as the “bate-bolas” take over the streets of the some of the most marginalized neighborhoods in the city.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
In Brazil, Carnival is in full swing. But far from the beaches and tourist-packed events in the working class and predominantly Afro-Brazilian neighborhoods, Carnival is decidedly different. Known there as bate-bola, crews in Rio’s outskirts don clown-like costumes and race through neighborhoods to a frenetic mix of funk, fireworks and fear. Men have long dominated bate-bola. But as NPR’s Carrie Kahn reports, women are joining in.
(SOUNDBITE OF SEWING MACHINE STITCHING)
CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Monique Veira is busy sewing long strips of colorful, pink Lycra pieces for the Bem Feito, or Well Done, crew’s bate-bola costume this year.
MONIQUE VEIRA: (Non-English language spoken).
KAHN: “I’m sewing the cap here to cover the crew member’s face,” she says. The 39-year-old mechanical engineer says she also sews the huge ruffly skirts, as well as the bulging, feather-filled sleeves. Incandescent, colored tights are part of the mix, as well as a glittery headdress. “We do it differently than Carnival in Rio’s beach neighborhoods and tourist areas,” she says.
VEIRA: (Non-English language spoken).
KAHN: “They like those block parties,” she says, “where everyone is practically naked, but not here.”
(SOUNDBITE OF SEWING MACHINE STITCHING)
KAHN: Bate-bolas, loosely translated as the ball beaters, celebrate Carnaval in Rio’s outskirts. Their name comes from the ball tied to the end of a large stick that they slam against the ground, enchanting and intimidating onlookers. Just where this mix of extravagant costumes and revelry came from is much debated. Some say Portuguese colonizers brought it over. Or like Andra Maturana, who runs Bem Feito with her husband, believes – it was born out of her neighborhood’s working-class roots.
ANDRA MATURANA:…
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