From Canada to Brazil
The Montreal Jazz Ballet, one of the main dance companies in the world, arrives in Brazil in August. A mixture of modern jazz, classical dance, theatre, circus and visual arts, the performance includes two choreographies: Short Works:24, composed by 24 one-minute long pieces, and Les Chambres des Jacques, which represents the trivialities of daily life, with a soundtrack that ranges from Vivaldi to Canadian folk music. The company will perform in Porto Alegre (August 3, Sesi Theatre), Florianópolis (August 5, Ademir Rosa Theatre), São Paulo (August 8, Alfa Theatre), Rio de Janeiro (August 11, Municipal Theatre), Belo Horizonte (August 14, Arts Palace); Recife (August 16, UFPE Theatre) and Salvador (August 18, Castro Alves Theatre).
Regional menu with an eastern touch
The exchange between Brazilian regional cuisines is already a tradition of the SP Bom de Mesa Festival, which reaches its fifth edition. Each restaurant in this project will receive a chef from a different region of the country who will develop an exclusive recipe. This year, all the creations must contain at least one Japanese ingredient, as a tribute to the 100th anniversary of the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants. The Nakombi restaurant, for example, will offer deep-fried tuna with shiitake mushrooms (photo). In São Paulo, the festival will be held between August 26 and 28 in restaurants like Amadeus, Arábia, Terraço Itália and Vinheria Percussi. From August 29 to 31, the event takes place in Campos de Jordão at the Confraria do Sabor and the Le Foyer restaurants and in Valinhos, at the Laura and Francesco restaurant.
The best of Abruzzo in Brasil
Abruzzo is located at the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Apennines and Italy’s East Coast. Since June 26, this 4200 sq. mile territory now has a small domain in São Paulo. In the Jardim Paulistano district, the By Abruzzo brand promotes tourism and enogastronomy in the region. Although little known in Brazil, the attractions in Abruzzo include three national parks, a network of thirty natural reserves and historical buildings in its 305 cities. The region also combines its beautiful beaches with the ski resorts. Such diverse geography also influences the region’s gastronomy. “If I had to choose a dish that epitomizes Abruzzo, I would choose the scrippelle m’busse, prepared in a chicken or mixed sauce”, recommends the region’s Minister of Agriculture, Marco Verticelli, one of the authorities present at the opening. “It’s a very old dish. French crepes are based on it.” In partnership with Feabra (The Federation of Abruzzesi Associations in Brazil), the By Abruzzo space will promote cultural activities, information services and differentiated travel packages for those who want to visit or do business in the region. The brand also has a branch in Ribeirão Preto.
A visit to Xingu
The Avenida Faria Lima, home to some of São Paulo’s main business buildings, will receive at the Casa Brasileira Museum (www.mcb.sp.gov.br) an exhibition that focuses on another type of construction. Composed by 46 black and white photo panels, the Casa Xinguana exhibition explores the architecture and social function of the traditional dwellings of the native Indian population at the Xingu National Park. The images were captured by photographer and anthropologist Milton Guran, 30 years ago, and include portraits of the Quarup (a ritual to honor the dead), the Jawari game (a game in which opponents throw darts at each other) and a wedding. The initiative is part of the Casas do Brasil Project, of which purpose is to create an inventory of different abodes in the country.
The MIS is back, in great style
Renovated and modernized, the Sound and Image Museum (MIS) in São Paulo opens once again on August, 9. “We are bringing the MIS back into the cultural realm”, promises Daniela Bousso, the museum’s general director. Built in the 1970s, the 53,821 sq. ft. building now houses the LabMIS, Brazil’s first public laboratory of new media. The MIS also displays its rich collection, composed by more than 300 thousand titles, like photos, films, videos, posters, records, testimonials and sound recordings. The museum’s official website is back online and soon its collection will be available on the web. The traditional Short Film Festival, will be held between August 23 and 29. The museum will also host the Minute Festival and the Sao Paulo Audiovisual Festival. This year’s program will also include a photography exhibition by Galileu Garcia, the international E-Flux videoart festival, anime and street art exhibitions.
An environmentally friendly 5-star hotel
The first 100% environmentally friendly 5-star hotel in Brazil is located in Cabo de Santo Agostinho (PE), a city 23 miles from Recife. The Eco Resort do Cabo, managed by RIA Hotelaria Sustentável, has a solar heating system, full water reuse, composting system, organic garden and activities that focus on the guests’ environmental awareness.
The tour begins on the beach, where sea-turtles lay their eggs under the supervision of Ibama (The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources), moves on to the wetlands, inhabited by wild animals, and goes all the way to the Armando Holanda Cavalcanti Metropolitan Park, the country’s largest military historic site that houses colonial military ruins, like the building no. 001 of the Brazilian army.
In addition to the environmental program, it offers all the services of a 5-star hotel, such as a natural spa, helipad, sport courts and an aquatic complex. The swimming pool water is treated with oxidation and ultraviolet ltra filtration and sterilization procedures, which have replaced the use of chlorine.
Eco Resort do Cabo
Av. Beira-Mar, 750 – Suape, Cabo de Santo Agostinho-PE
Reservations: (81) 3527-7000; reservas@ecoresortdocabo.com.br
www.ecoresortdocabo.com.br
From Robespierre a Pelé
Italian painter Ernesto Tatafiore’s studio is located on the fifth floor of a building in Naples, the former residence of historian, philosopher and jurist Giambattista Vico (1668-1744). This is where he develops his creations, deeply influenced by History and Philosophy, which can now be seen from up close in Brazil at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC) in Nitéroi, from Tuesdays to Sundays, until September 28. In partnership with the Italian Institute of Culture, the space promotes the exhibition Ernesto Tatafiore –Filosófico-utópico, with 16 oils on canvas painted this year, in which the artist portrays philosophers and personalities, from Robespierre to Pelé. These images alternate with allegorical representations of utopia, allegory, metaphors, metaphysics and philosophy. This Neapolitan artist, born in 1943, began to be acclaimed by the contemporary art scene in the 1960s. He was part of the Italian avant-garde and conceptual movement and took part in the Venice Biennial in 1970, 1980 and 1990.
