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São Luis is famous for its Bumba-meu-boi – a fascinating, wild, folkloric festival with a Carnivalesque atmosphere in which participants dance, sing and tell the story of the death and resurrection of the bull – with plenty of room for improvisation. Parade groups spend the year in preparation, costumes are lavish and new songs and poetries are invented. There are three forms of Bumba-meu-boi in Maranhão: ‘bois de matraca’, ‘bois de zabumba’ and ‘bois de orquestra’.
The story and its portrayal differ throughout the Northeast, but the general plot is as follows: Catrina, goddaughter of the local farm owner, is pregnant and feels a craving to eat the tongue of the best ‘boi’ (Bull) on the farm. She cajoles on her husband, Chico, to kill the beast. Once the dead bull is discovered, several characters (caricatures drawn from all levels of society) do some detective work and finally track down the perpetrator of the crime. Chico is brought to trial, but the bull is resuscitated by various magical incantations and tunes. A pardon is granted and the story reaches its happy ending when Chico is reunited with Catrina.
The festivals start in the second half of June and continue into the second week in August. Always check with us about the exact date.
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