Carnaval brings dancing, culture to Jake’s Nightclub

Sun, beautiful women in bikinis and 70-degree weather were the ideal conditions to transport Brazil to Bloomington on Friday at Jake’s Nightclub for the annual Bloomington Brazilian Carnaval.

As the evening cooled outside, the party was heating up inside. Salsa and samba music played, followed by live music from Latino jazz band Fuego Lento.  

Among the diverse crowd were people from Brazil and other parts of the world.

“Carnaval is for anybody,” said former Rio de Janeiro Carnaval dancer and graduate student Mazinha Hauskrecht. “In Rio, you see older people and kids all dancing and partying in the street. It’s a family event.”

By 10 p.m. the drinks had been passed out, and everybody was waiting for what some would consider the main event: the live Brazilian percussion music.

“It’s not the same thing as Carnaval, but for some it’s the closest possible experience to go abroad and experience that culture,” said Portuguese and Spanish professor Luciana Namorato. “It’s also a good way for people who are studying Portuguese to experience the culture and practice outside of class.”

To celebrate, some were dressed in colorful wardrobes, beads and masks.
As the night went on, Jake’s dance floor was flooded with people dancing and swaying.

“I came because I know people who are going to be in the performance group,” said graduate student Miguel Angel Marquez. “I love the music, and I understand a part of it because I’m taking Portuguese.”

Right before midnight there was a performance from aerial dance company Flight Club as well as a performance from Flores do Samba dance company, but what really got the crowd going was the IU Brazilian Percussion Ensemble.

Jake’s became a sea of people jumping and dancing to the music.

“Carnaval is about celebrating life, fun, friends, family and being together,” Hauskrecht said. “It’s about forgetting your sadness and having fun.”