Arraia Child of Brazil

Family Fun Day

St. Mathew's Church Hall, Buckley

13/08/2016

12pm

 Come to our party to celebrate Brazilian culture and help our charity Child of Brazil. We will have lovely food, drinks, music and dance. Come and enjoy our games (bingo, raffle prizes, tombola, huck a duck and lots more). Join us in our "quadrilha" dance. We will also have a space for your donations of unwanted goods (clothes, toys, books etc) for our car boot sale events. Let's have fun!

Tickets:

Adults: £4

Kids: free

 Your ticket includes one ticket for food and one for a drink.

Food: cakes, hot dogs, corn on the cob, toffee apples, pop corn and lots more.

Brazilian food: bolo de milho, tapioca e macaxeira, canjica, cus cus, coxinha, mingau de milho (munguza) e arroz doce.

Drinks: coffee, tea, juices, soft drinks and caipirinha.

Games: bingo, tombola, huck a duck, rafflle prizes and much more.

Dess code: "caipira" - checkered shirts and jeans (cowboy style if possible) :) Kids can dress up in their favourite fancy dress up or just casual.

Dance: Have a taste of our quadrilha dance and forro music.

Here you find some information about June parties. I know the party will be in August, but as we are not in Brasil this is only a way of feeling back home again for some hours :)

Festa Junina

The Brazilian Festa Junina, which dates back to Portuguese colonisation, commemorates Saint Anthony, Saint John and Saint Peter and marks the end of summer and the beginning of the harvest.

Festa Junina is the term used to describe the traditional festivities that happen at the beginning of the Brazilian winter in June. It is a month to commemorate some of the most famous saints for Catholics; namely Saint Anthony, Saint John the Baptist and Saint Peter. It is also a month to honour rain, the harvest season and marital union. Those attending will be treated to delicious and typical food, will dress up like farmers, enjoy bonfires and dance the quadrilha. After Carnival, it is the second most important popular celebration in Brazilian culture.

The Origins

Festa Junina’s origins date back to Portuguese colonisation, and the holiday has developed over time to incorporate Brazilian cultural elements. The culture of indigenous populations, Afro-Brazilians and European immigrants has all influenced how the festivities are held in different regions in Brazil. Starting in the countryside at first where most religious people lived and where they relied more on rain for their agriculture, the festivities quickly spread to larger cities all around the country. Every region has its own way of celebrating, but the most impressive festivities and dances take place in the North East.

Typical Cuisine

As June is the month when corn crops are harvested, the majority of sweet and savoury snacks and cakes are made of corn. A few popular examples include pamonha, canjica, corn on the cob and corn cakes. In addition, rice pudding, the Brazilian version of mulled wine, sweet potatoes and much more are also included on the Festa Junina menu.

Typical Dances

Quadrilha folk dances are a vital component of  Festa Junina. Dances involve up to 30, colourfully dressed performers, while a chosen ‘bride and groom’ act as the centre of the spectacle. Inspiration is taken from the 17th century French quadrilles, a type of traditional square dance, while the Brazilian adaptations are considerably more complex. Before the actual dance starts, a theatre performance tells the story of a single man who is pressured into marrying a girl that is carrying his child. Everyone participates by singing traditional songs, including the lovers’ families, the police, the priests and everyone who comes from their ‘village’. Vibrant and highly convivial, these jovial dances are without a doubt the highlight of the Festa Junina. Every year, national, regional and local quadrilha dance competitions are held all around the country.

Traditional Clothing

The typical clothes worn at the Festa Junina are inspired by vintage rural fashion as the themes of harvest and rain are central to the festivities. Young men wear the beard or the moustache, and short trousers with braces, while women put their hair up in ponytails, wear checkered dresses and freckles.

In the Northeast of Brazil

Even though the festivities are held all around the country, it is in the Northeast that they are the most popular and impressive. The month of June is a time in which people give thanks to the three catholic saints: Santo Antônio on the 13th, São João on the 24th and São Pedro on the 29th. As droughts are a serious issue in the region, ‘nordestinos’ celebrate the rain which is essential to their agriculture.

The biggest and most impressive Festa Junina celebrations happen in the state of Paraiba, in the city Campina Grande, and in the state of Pernambuco, in the city of Caruaru, each of which gather millions of visitors every year. The state of Bahia is quite famous too for its festivities; thousands of tourists flock there every year to attend the São João celebrations, with most of the visitors going to the ones in Porto Seguro.

Moreover, in the state of Maranhão, in São Luis but also in other cities, they celebrate the Festa Junina with different variations – known as ‘Sotaques’, or accents, by the locals – of the Bumba-meu-Boi. The Bumba-meu-Boi dance is performed by a colourful troupe of characters to distinctive music composed primarily by drum beats and brass instruments. The spectacular costumes and dances alone are worth the detour to Maranhão, and the echo of the music on the colonial streets makes the experience even more magical. Like the other Festa Junina folk dances, Bumba-meu-Boi also serve a narrative function. Performers tell the story of a slave who is left by a plantation owner to care for his bull which then dies and is later revived. A black velvet bull costume embellished with sequins and ribbon is worn by one of the dancers during the spectacle.

The Bonfire

The bonfire is also a traditional element expected at every Festa Junina. The ritual of gathering around a large flame derives from pagan tradition, as this custom is practiced to commemorate the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere each year. June can be a cold month, especially in the South, and by congregating around the warmth of the fire the festival’s focus on community building is further emphasised.

Source: http://theculturetrip.com/south-america/brazil/articles/festa-junina-celebrating-the-brazilian-harvest/

 

Come and have fun!