Three-day format of parades is praised by carnival attendees, but doubts about rules also appear

Held over two nights since 1984, the parade of Rio’s samba schools will have an unprecedented calendar from 2025: the groups will perform over three nights (from Sunday to Tuesday). The announcement, made on Monday night, was received in different ways by those who make the party happen, but one point is common among them: everyone has doubts (or suggestions) about how the rules will adapt to the new reality.

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The longest-serving interpreter active in Sapucaí, Neguinho da Beija-Flor — who debuted at the Nilópolis school’s microphones in 1976, a position in which he remains today — states that he “loved” the initiative of Gabriel David, new president of Liesa, the who he calls his “nephew” (Gabriel is the son of Anísio Abraão David, bicheiro and patron of Beija-Flor).

— Carnival is the largest open-air audiovisual spectacle on the planet. (Parade in) Two days are very difficult for those watching — says the handler, who still adds fuel to the fire: for him, three schools should fall to the Gold Series, and another three move up to the Special Group. — That way, everyone would put on an excellent show, whether it was to not go down or to win.

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Before the parade was divided into more than one night, Neguinho remembers having already paraded at noon. For example, in 1983, the year in which the performer also composed the samba known for mentioning “Pinah, the black Cinderella”.

The Beija-Flor carnival worker, João Vitor Araújo, says he is “looking forward” to this moment and even hopes to be able to enjoy the festivities more, which is difficult nowadays, as he explains.

— There is almost always no time for the artists to participate in the party itself, because we either parade on Sunday or on Monday. Now comes Tuesday. So I’m really looking forward to this news, and I’m rooting for Beija-Flor to parade on Tuesday — says João Vitor, who wants to see an increase in the number of schools in the Special Group, which currently has 12 associations.

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Schools ready for change

Who will debut in the Special Group in 2025 is Unidos de Padre Miguel (UPM), current champion of the Gold Series. Carnival member of the group, veteran Alexandre Louzada notes that it is necessary to “wait” for information about all aspects of the party, after the change. He compares the change to the inclusion of stage lighting in the Sambadrome, received with suspicion at the beginning, and widely adopted in the last carnival.

— As a carnival worker, I can guarantee that UPM will adapt to any news regarding the format of the parade, as well as possible changes that may eventually arise. And our concern is to make a great carnival that matches the spectacle — responds Louzada, champion of the Rio carnival on six occasions.

Signing the parades of the biggest champion of Rio’s festivities, André Rodrigues, a carnival worker from Portela, highlights that, regardless of the novelty, “samba schools need and should be treated as protagonists of a space that is theirs”.

One of the sensations of the last carnival with the plot “Um defeito de color”, André says that he will only be able to say whether the extra day is good or bad after living the experience.

— We, at Portela, are ready to put on a great show worthy of the size of Portela, a school that has participated in all the parades since its creation, where it survived, won and was even the protagonist of many changes in the updates that today make the parade what it is. it is — observes André Rodrigues.