Britain’s biggest festival of Brazilian culture Brazilica returns to Liverpool for the third year running this July, and this year the fun lasts for longer than ever with a week-long celebration of Brazilian culture leading up to the main carnival and parade day on Saturday 20 July.
This vibrant festival attracted over 60,000 visitors to Liverpool City Centre in 2011 and 80,000 in 2012 and organisers Liverpool Carnival Company and Orb Events anticipate that this year’s event will be the best Brazilica yet, taking over the entire city centre on Saturday 20th July. Brand new for 2013, a programme of events at various city venues starting on Friday 12th July will warm the city up for the main carnival and parade day.
This new festival week will see the return of the annual Carnival Ball and Carnival Queen Competition, Brazilian film screenings, carnival art exhibitions and Liverpool’s first capoeira competition.
Carnival day itself (Saturday 20th July) will once again be situated in Williamson Square where visitors can expect to find the best selection of Latin American food and drink as well as listen to authentic Brazilian musicians throughout the day. Elsewhere in the city centre (locations to be announced very soon) will see the return of the ‘Soccer Zone’ which kicked off big time at Brazilica 2012 with skills classes and demonstrations, and this year’s Soccer Zone will also include a celebrity 5 a side match! There will also be a second stage featuring vibrant music and dance performances.
The carnival parade will take place on the evening of Saturday 20th July and since 2008 has included samba groups from countries as wide-ranging as Brazil, Singapore, France, Holland, Ireland, Germany and Spain, with prestigious bands such as Paraiso School of Samba (who featured heavily in the 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony) getting involved. Bands from Japan, Poland, Sweden and Italy are already expressing interest in performing in this year’s parade!
Brazilica has become one of the flagship events of the year in Liverpool’s festival calendar – a colourful celebration of Brazilian music, dance, culture, food and of course, football and a fitting warm up to Brazil hosting the World Cup 2014 and the 2016 Olympic Games. In 2012 the festival was nominated for numerous awards including Best Cultural Event at the Brazilian International Press Awards, Best Cultural Event at the Juice FM Style Awards and Best Marketing Campaign at the City of Liverpool Business Awards.
Maeve Morris, Artistic Director of Liverpool Carnival Company said, “It’s so exciting to watch Brazilica grow year on year, both in terms of audience and the range of art forms and events on offer. From its beginnings as a carnival parade in 2008 to the fully fledged festival it is today, we’re very proud of what we’ve achieved and hope to continue to bring the party to Liverpool for many years to come. It’s an unrivalled chance to experience Brazilian culture, music, food and sport in the U.K.”
Liverpool Carnival Company and Orb Events are once again working with key city organisations such as City Central BID and Liverpool City Council to produce the event and are also attracting a wealth of commercial investment in the festival to ensure it remains free to attend.
BRAZILICA promises to be Liverpool’s most exciting, exotic and vibrant spectacle: a Rio-style Brazilian samba carnival exploding with life, music, sport and dazzling costumes through the streets of the city centre, so get BRAZILICA 2013 (12th – 20th July) in your diaries and get ready to party with Liverpool Carnival Company.