At last, here we are at the last day of the Festival, and in one sense, we’re happy to be able to get some rest after all the stress of organizing and presenting three weeks of events, but in another way, we’re already feeling a bit of nostalgia, for the atmosphere of joy and friendship that has accompanied this Festival of the Ten Years.
We began in the morning with a roda of capoeira by the ICBIE’s resident group, Unicar Cidade Baixa, with Prof. Avestruz and the Prof. Princesa who led the home team. Then came the group Filhos do Sol Nascente, led by Mestre Raio, who assumed the direction of the group after the death of his father, Mestre Pedro, Pé di Ferro. Therefore, it was only logical that Mestre Pedro and Mestre Zambi, founder of the Unicar, should be awarded the Leonardo Prizes for the capoeira category. After the sport, everyone restored their energy with a delicious feijoada prepared by our Rosilene, who proved to be a terrific cook!
In the afternoon, continuing the friendly family modo, the components of the theater group and other participants in our Institute’s project arrived and received, during an informal and lively ceremony, a certificate of recognition and of thanks for their collaboration during these years, as a kind of nomination for the next edition of Leonardo Prizes! Homages were given to Adriele, Marjorie, Juliana, Meg, Raquel, Jamile, Ivanildo, Josemar, Rosilene and Loona. (Gessica, Eduardo, Alan, Ana Paula and Airesa, unable to attend the ceremony, will be given their certificates at the next opportunity).
The most emotional moment came when Pietro and Marlene were given a surprise certificate of friendship and affection by the kids, recognizing their role as the visionaries and founders of the ICBIE. The emotional moment dissolved with the appearance of a giant panettone (kindly offered by our friend and supporter Agostino Pedone) that we devoured at the end of the evening, wishing everyone a merry Christmess and a marvelous new year!
Of course, we wish to thank our foreign partners who, with their moral and economic support contributed to the realization of the festival. We also than the public, our friends, the local community and all those who came during these days of events and commemorations: without their presence and affection a good event would be impossible. In particular, we have to thank the local and international artists who made our festival more interesting and meaningful, hoping not to forget anyone: Juliana Coelho, Estilo Livre, the graffiti artists of Nova10ordem and those we invited, Marcella Bomba and Rosalba Gravina, Max Gaggino, Antonello Veneri, Tiago Nonato, Marco Illuminati, Stefano Barbi Cinti, Paranaguá, Leonel Mattos, Menelaw Sete, Romenil, Zaca Oliveira, Jan Rzweski, Anna Clementi, Hedda Oledki, Thomas Stern, Laurie Schwartz, Sista Katia, Nó de Marinheiro, Paco Gomes and all of our alumni.
Heartfelt thanks to all of you: see you at the next ICBIE birthday and for the next edition of Leonardo Prizes.
