“I consider Capoeira the art of survival. I believe that for individuals to survive in our present society, they need to have self discipline, self-expression, a strong sense of interdependence and community, respect for history and tradition, communication skills, a strong mind and body and an intense awareness of one’s surroundings…”
~ Mestre Preguiça ~

Mestre Preguiça trained with Mestre Bimba. After five years of training, and together with two more “capoeiristas”, he founded Group Senzala, one of the largest and most influential Capoeira Regional groups of the world. His specialty was technical instruction. He taught thousands of students, including men and women from all social classes.

Today, the Senzala Capoeira Group has over fifty Mestres, many of who are now teaching Capoeira outside of Brazil.
Mestre Preguiça had the vision to understand that Capoeira had to have a specialized structure to continue to grow and be appreciated by people everywhere.

By 1984, with a degree in Physical Education earned in Brazil and some specialized courses took in West Germany, Mestre Preguiça moved to United States to introduce Capoeira. After two years he founded the Omulu Capoeira Group of San Francisco. In addition to his role as a director of Group Omulu, Mestre Preguiça teaches at the San Francisco State University as a professor of Capoeira.

Mestre Preguiça always likes to work with at-risk youth, so in 1995 he added the Community Act Project (CAP) to the Omulu Group to help street kids. This well-succeeded program has over 200 members.  Many of the first generation have not only graduated high school, but are now attending college.
Mestre Preguiça is a teacher who places high demands on his students and is quick to criticize. But the students’ experiences upon braking their personal boundaries and expectations serve as continual inspiration and motivation.

Mestre Preguiça and Mestre DiMola combined their efforts and energies to unify their independent Capoeira groups. As a result Omulu Guanabara Capoeira was born.