Samuel Lees-Manning (Mascote)
About this class
Mascote’s Capoeira movement and music workshops and regular residencies are focused on clean structured content, which is designed to be used as a base for semi structured improvisation and of course play. Capoeira is a body game, body language and a cultural expression of liberation.
About Samuel Lees-Manning (Mascote)
Since 2001 Mascote has had over 20 years practising the art, and over 15 years of professional experience teaching and performing Capoeira, since 2006. Mascote has directed, conducted workshops, and performed in numerous international festivals and arts events worldwide, to great acclaim, and is internationally recognised, having taught and performed all over Europe, and as far away as India, South Korea, South Africa, Russia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia and, of course, Brazil.
Mascote has taught and performed in various institutions over the years, including resident teaching and performing work at FABRIC (previously DanceXchange (2009-2014), including teaching for their Centre for Advanced Training; various activities at the University of Birmingham, including ‘Brazilian Folk’, a piece of musical and physical theatre, which Mascote directed and choreographed; the Drum arts centre in both performance and event management; the Midland Arts Centre, as part of the International Dance Festival Birmingham 2014; and the University of Nottingham Mental Health Institute, hosting a research project into Creative Practice as Mutual Recovery in 2015. Mascote founded the first International Capoeira Festival Birmingham, in 2010, which aims annually to engage public participation of up to 150 Capoeiristas from across the globe, & has hosted world-famous guest master artists such as Mestre Jogo de Dentro, Mestre Acordeon & Grande Mestre Suassuna. In 2014/5, Mascote opened the first “Cordao DeOuro” Capoeira studio/academy in Birmingham, the first of its kind in England, which is dedicated solely to the promotion, distribution, education and performance of Capoeira, the Brazilian music, movement, martial art.
Most recently, in 2017, Mascote was invited by the Playbox Theatre in Warwick to become an associate artist-a means of recognising his work as being important, and highly valued as a mentor to the young people in the company. In 2020 Capoeira CDOB featured on the BBC oneness ident which was played for two years on BBC one during advertising breaks. In 2021 together with Contra mestre Joyce they created Viela JQ a new Brazilian street food concept and brought the Brazilian Cultural Centre into a brand new dance studio and cafe which has been recognised internationally.
