Rio samba schools will showcase their 2025 themes at Cidade do Samba

In yet another new feature for the 2025 carnival, the public will be able to participate in the presentation of the themes of the samba schools of the Special Group, considered the elite of the Rio carnival. The event organized by the Independent League of Samba Schools of Rio de Janeiro (Liesa) called Noite dos Enredos (Night of Themes) will take place on August 30, starting at 8 pm at Cidade do Samba, in the port area of the capital of Rio de Janeiro, where the groups’ warehouses are located. The entrance fee is one kilo of non-perishable food. Rio samba schools will showcase their 2025 themes at Cidade do Samba

The idea is to tell the stories of the 12 samba schools in a very carnival-like way and how they will be addressed in next year’s parades at the Marquês de Sapucaí Sambadrome. All the groups have already defined their themes, which for 2025 are very varied. The presentations for the schools to convey their messages and explain the stories through dance, theater or samba itself will have a set time.

“So that we can communicate the themes as a whole. This will generate a greater understanding among people about what the schools are bringing to the avenue, a greater expectation of what each school can bring to the avenue. In addition, we can explain each theme without actually having the sambas ready for this presentation, since we are still in a samba competition phase. [nas sedes da escola para escolher o que vai representar a agremiação]. It is a unique opportunity for the schools. The highlight of it all is the presence of the samba people, of the samba dancers in the Samba City to kick off the chronological line of the themes of all the schools together in the Samba City once again”, he analyzed for Brazil Agencythe president of Liesa, Gabriel David.

Chief of Ramos

The event’s program also includes a performance by Cacique de Ramos, a traditional block from the Leopoldina area, with its famous samba circle, which has produced, among others, talents such as Zeca Pagodinho, Jovelina Pérola Negra, Almir Guineto and Arlindo Cruz.

Journalist, researcher, scriptwriter, author of books such as Três poetas do samba-enredo, and carnival commentator for samba schools, Leonardo Bruno, stated that the plot is the starting point for preparing any samba school parade.

“The first thing that is defined in a samba school, when thinking about the following year’s carnival, is the theme, and it is from there that all the other sectors of the school will start working. It is from this theme that the composers will think about the composition of the samba theme. The carnival designer will start to create costumes and floats, and the drum section itself will start to think about whether there is any sound that could inspire their parades, for example the sound of another city or another state that could enrich the performance of that drum section on the avenue. That is where the work for the following year begins,” he told Brazil Agency.

“More importantly, this is the story that the school will tell on the avenue. It is worth remembering that this way of telling stories is typically Brazilian. It is our invention. Only in Brazil can a story be told through floats, costumes, samba enredo, drums, front commission, floats, floats, floats, floats, so this way of telling a story is typically Brazilian,” he added.

In Leonardo Bruno’s view, it is precisely this story that will drive the school on the avenue. “The members are certainly much more excited and much more stimulated to parade when they tell a story about something they want to say, which is why in recent years the themes have made a big difference in Rio de Janeiro’s carnival. Over the last ten years, we have seen a very important movement among carnival designers to tell stories that speak of our roots, of the blackness that created the samba schools, that speak of the samba schools’ own histories. Choosing the theme is a fundamental moment for a samba school and it already begins to determine what we will see on the avenue the following year,” he pointed out.

For the journalist, author of the book Eleven Incredible Women of Rio Carnival – Flag Bearers and carnival commentator, Aydano André Motta, if the samba school parades could be compared to the construction of a house or a building, he could say that the theme is the cornerstone of this construction. “It is the starting point, the base, the foundation, on which everything else will be built. A good theme guarantees a good samba, which will guarantee a good parade concept. On the other hand, a bad theme will have to be fixed by the samba and the floats and costumes, in other words, everything starts wrong”, said Aydano to the reporter of Brazil Agency.

According to the journalist, historically, samba schools have always spoken of their ancestors, of the black people who created samba and carnival with characters who are invisible in Brazilian history. In his view, this behavior intensified in the 1960s with the arrival of set designer, teacher, producer and television presenter Fernando Pamplona, considered a master among so many carnival designers and artists from the National School of Fine Arts and the Municipal Theater, in Salgueiro.

“It was a first moment, so much so that Salgueiro is the champion with a story about Quilombo dos Palmares. Afterwards, several other schools followed suit and told countless stories, characters and facts that the official History of Brazil narrated by white people, appropriated by the colonizers, tried to make invisible”, he stated.

Aydano André Motta also highlighted that this movement has intensified significantly in recent years. “So much so that we have reached the highest point, the apogee of the narrative quality of carnival. We are living this moment. These are engaged plots that exalt black people, their religiosity, their art, their characters, their achievements and denounce the tragedies of which this part of the population is a victim,” he highlighted.

For the journalist, this type of narrative ensures the quality of the samba schools’ parades, because the samba dancers, their members, feel more at ease. “When there is a good story to tell, a story that has to do with them and that they identify with. That is why we have to celebrate the narrative quality of the samba schools in Rio de Janeiro,” he observed.

Plots

Aydano gave examples of plots for the 2025 carnival that follow this path. Among those he considers to be great highlights are Beija-Flor, which will talk about Luiz Fernando Ribeiro do Carmo, better known as Laíla, who died of COVID in June 2021.

For several years, Laíla was the coordinator of the carnival of the blue and white of Nilópolis, in addition to having performed several functions in other samba schools of the special group. “One of the greatest samba artists of all time and who had a very strong religious feeling [Laila era do candomblé e sempre era visto com várias guias de santo penduradas no pescoço. Na sua sala no barracão da escola tinha sempre um altar com várias imagens de santos e orixás]”, reported the journalist.

There are still other plots, which for Aydano André Motta, deserve to be highlighted in next year’s carnival, such as Malunguinho: The Messenger of Three Worldssigned by Viradouro carnival designer Tarcísio Zanon, based on an Afro-indigenous entity.

“The one from Mangueira will talk about the Bantu people and the Little AfricaParaíso do Tuiuti, which will tell the story of Xica Manincongo, a trans slave who lived here in Brazil during the slavery period. [Unidos da] Tijuca will talk about Logun Edé, an orixá. Portela will talk about Mílton Nascimento. These are just a few examples. There are many narratives and many beautiful stories that will be told in 2025 at Sapucaí. This is the guarantee of a quality parade because a good theme makes for a good samba and a good parade,” he added.

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