Grupo Axé Capoeira began in Recife, Brazil in 1982. Today, as Canada’s first academy of Capoeira, it continues to rise as one of the world’s leading Capoeira organizations. Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, and music. It was developed in the 1500’s by African and Indigenous slaves in Brazil as a form of self-defence from their oppressors. It is marked by its agile and tricky movements that may be executed anywhere from an upside-down position to a gravity defying kick. It has a strong acrobatic component in some styles and is always played with music. The word Capoeira is an indigenous word meaning ‘tall grass’. If slaves managed to escape, they would often use this grass to hide in and ambush their masters
