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In Brazil there are are many popular "dance dramas" (essentially a kind of theatrical production) which can trace their origins back to the Portugal of the Middle Ages, but have since been moulded by centuries in Brazil's cultural melting pot. Mario de Andrade, the great authority on national folklore, has classified these dance dramas into four principal groups: reisados, cheganças, pastoris, and ranchos.
Reisados: The reisados consist of a series of 24 folk plays of which the most popular is the Bumba-Meu-Boi. The plot of the Boi drama centres around the misfortunes of the prize bull which a wealthy cattle rancher has searched for in order to improve his herd.
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Cheganças: Cheganças (arrival) is a folk play performed during the Christmas season. It tells of the arrival by sea of the Moors, their defeat, and their eventual baptism by the Christians.
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Pastoris: Pastoris (sheperds) started as a performance of Christmas carols in front of the Nativity scene in preparation for midnight mass. Today pastoris is a secular event. Female street revellers parade in parallel "red" and "blue" lines, both of which include the same characters: the teacher; Diana, the pretty angel; the gypsy; the old man (a comedian); the Northern Star; and the Southern Cross, among others. The girl sheperds sing and play tambourines, accompanied by guitars and a solo wind-instrument.
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Ranchos: Among the earliest forms of carnival celebrated in Rio de Janeiro were the ranchos, solemn and romantic love stories acted out by dancers to the beat of a marching rhythm. New ranchos were written every year, and were performed by groups of dancers representing various districts of the city. Competing for recognition and prizes, they became the forerunners of today's samba schools.
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