2-CAPRICHOSOS DE PILARES SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The Caprichosos de Pilares Samba School is very cheerful, with easy-going parades. Headquartered in the outlying Pilares district of Rio, its colors are blue and white. Established in 1949, it is still today battling to take its first title in the Special Group.

THEME: "Xuxa e seu Reino Encantado no Carnaval da Imaginação” (Xuxa and her Enchanted Kingdom in the Carnival of the Imagination)
It selected TV star Xuxa Meneghel as its theme this year, a favorite with all Brazilian children who is known as the Queen of the Little Ones. She was born in Santa Rosa, a town in upstate Rio Grande do Sul, coming to Rio de Janeiro as a teenager to seek her fortune as a model. When taking part in children´s programs on television she found her vocation. She has also recorded several discs and made a series of movies, all aimed at the junior public.

COLORS : BLUE AND WHITE

3-UNIDOS DA TIJUCA SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: One of the oldest samba groups in Rio, the Unidos da Tijuca Samba School was established in 1931, taking its sole championship title five years later, during Carnival 1936. Its grounds are located on the Morro do Borel hill in Tijuca, where most of its members live, although its rehearsals are held at the Clube dos Portuários near the Rodoviária bus terminal.

THEME: "O sonho da criação e a criação do sonho: a arte da ciência no tempo do impossível" (The dream of the creation and the creation of the dream: the art of science in the time of the impossible)
This theme is an invitation to explore the amazing world of inventors, showing how brilliant ideas become great solutions for humankind. Some of them have changed the course of history, opening up new paths to the future. This parade promises to be very light-hearted, with the infectious gaiety of the Tijuca samba stars.

COLORS : YELLOW AND BLUE

4-SALGUEIRO SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The Salgueiro Samba School is supported by one of the largest fan-clubs in Rio. During the 1960 and 1970s, it gathered together a group of artists who changed the history of these Carnival Parades, particularly through showcasing Afro-Brazilians and their achievements. These artists established a group and spread out to other samba schools. Of the seven championships won by this Samba School in its red and white livery since it was first established in 1953, only one has been taken at the Sambadrome.

THEME: "A cana que aqui se planta tudo dá, até energia... Álcool, o combustível do futuro" (The sugar-cane planted here produces everything, even energy… Alcohol, the fuel of the future)
Its theme tells the story of fuel alcohol distilled from sugarcane, showing how constant oil price swings make alcohol the energy solution of the future. This parade also stresses cultural aspects linked to Brazil´s sugarcane plantations, including slave labor shipped over from Africa during the XVII and XVIII centuries.

COLORS : RED AND WHITE

5-GRANDE RIO SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: Established in 1988, the Grande Rio Samba School is one of the newest members of the Special Group. Its grounds are in the Duque de Caxias satellite town, which is one of the most heavily-populated districts in the Baixada Fluminense area. This is the favorite Samba School of television stars, who often attend its rehearsal at the Monte Líbano Club in the South Zone of Rio. Its colors are green, red and white. It has not yet managed to take the championship title in the main parade.

THEME: "Vamos vestir a camisinha, meu amor!" (Let´s rubber up together, my love!)
Its theme tells how the Gardens of Delights appeared on the boundary between day and night, when a cunning serpent decided to mess everything up, creating plagues and epidemics through the centuries. The Ancient Greeks were the first to develop condoms, made from animal intestines. However, new viruses have appeared and multiplied, challenging Science.

COLORS : GREEN, RED AND WHITE

6-MANGUEIRA SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The first Carnival Parade Champion (1932) and the winner of the first Parade held in the Sambadrome (1984), the Mangueira Samba School has long collected titles. It is also a winner through its outreach activities, with its trail-blazing efforts through vocational training workshops and on the sports field serving as models for its sister samba schools. Always concerned with enhancing its traditions, this Samba School adpted well to the modern version of the Carnival Parade, with its green and pink colors still collecting championship titles.

THEME: "Mangueira redescobre a Estrada Real... E deste Eldorado faz seu carnaval" (Mangueira rediscovers the Royal Road... And makes this Eldorado its Carnival)
This year´s theme offers a fascinating trip back through time to Brazil´s gold-rush days, when gold and diamonds were mined in Minas Gerais State, shipped out to enrich the Portuguese Crown. This Parade portrays the Gold Road that lead the Port of Rio, where the wealth of Brazil was shipped to Europe.

COLORS : GREEN AND PINK

7-PORTELA SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: A direct descendent of the Conjunto Oswaldo Cruz samba group, established in 1923, the Portela Samba School calls itself the oldest samba group in Rio, although its official name was registered only during the 1930s. With twenty championship titles, its imposing eagle – its official symbol – is the leading winner of Carnival in Rio, although it has never taken the title in the Sambadrome.

THEME: "Lendas e mistérios da Amazônia" (Legends and mysteries of Amazonia)
Striving for victory in its blue and white colors and headquartered in Madureira, a suburb of Rio de Janeiro, this Samba School will reproduce one of the most important themes in its history, which brought it the championship in 1970. This consists of a trip through Amazonia, recounting the legends and myths of the rainforest, recreating its local lore and legends.

COLORS : BLUE AND WHITE

1-TRADICAO SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: Like the Sambadrome and the Samba School League (Liesa) itself, the Tradição Samba School celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2004. Established on October 1, 1984, it is one of the youngest members of the Special Group. Its colors are blue and white, with rehearsal grounds in Campinho, a suburb close to Madureira.

THEME: "Contos de Areia" (Tales of the Sand)
TRADICAO SAMBA SCHOOL – A breakway from the Portela Samba School, Tradicao offers tribute to its parent group by reproducing the theme presented by the Eagle Samba School for the inauguration of the Sambadrome. In 1984, Portela was clearly the winner of the Sunday Parade, with Mangueira following on Monday; by a hair, the Green and Pink School took the Super Championship. This theme honors three famous Portela samba stars: Paulo da Portela, Natal and Clara Nunes.

COLORS : ROYAL BLUE, WHITE, GOLD AND SILVER.

2-PORTO DA PEDRA SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: Representing the São Gonçalo District, the second-most populous municipality in Rio de Janeiro State, the Unidos do Porto da Pedra Samba School was established on May 3, 1984 – another samba school celebrating its 20th anniversary. It is deeply involved in outreach activities, running a circus school to train young performers. The colors of its flag are red and white.

THEME: "Sou Tigre, sou Porto da Pedra à Internet – Mensageiro na história da vida do leva-e-traz" (I am Tiger, I am Porto da Pedra on the Internet – Messenger of history through the life of the mailman)
This year´s theme is a trip through the world of communications, starting with rock-drawings produced by cavemen and extending through a series of stages to reach the postman, who is the hero of this tale. The final portion of the Parade is dedicated to modern telecommunications, highlighting the Internet.

COLORS : RED AND WHITE

3-IMPERATRIZ SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The top title-holder of the Carnival Parades held in the Sambadrome, the Imperatriz Leopoldinense Samba School holds six titles, three of them taken in consecutive years (1999, 2000 and 2001): an unparalleled feat. This Samba School was established on March 6, 1959, with its green and white colors headquartered in Ramos, a suburb of the Leopoldina District.

THEME: "Breazail"
This year´s theme celebrates the 500th anniversary of Cabo Frio, one of the oldest towns on the Rio de Janeiro State coast, offering glimpses into the past. It was here that explorer Amerigo Vespucci built an entrepot for Brazilwood: a timber used to produce a rich purple dye that was much appreciated in the Old World. The narrative of Vespucci inspired Thomas Moore to write his Utopia, a classic philosophical treatise.

COLORS : GREEN AND WHITE

4-IMPÉRIO SERRANO SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: One of the longest-established Samba Schools in Rio de Janeiro, Império Serrano is headquartered in Madureira, a district that is home to most of its members and where its grounds are located. Established by stevedores on March 23, 1947, the colors of its flag are green and white. Its main characteristic is the high quality of its theme sambas, several of which have become real classics.

THEME: "Aquarela Brasileira" (Brazilian Watercolor)
Written by Silas de Oliveira, the best-known of them will be revived this year through the theme that was originally presented in 1964. Since then, many things have changed for Brazil and Carnival – ensuring a Parade that is very different from that presented forty years ago. But samba swings through the decades, enchanting generation after generation.

COLORS : GREEN AND WHITE

5-BEIJA-FLOR SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The Parade Champion last year, Beija-Flor has been a front-line challenger for this title during the past five Carnivals. It currently heads up the Samba School League (Liesa) Ranking. The only representative of the Nilopolis District in the Baixada Fluminense, it was established on December 25, 1948.

THEME: "Manôa, Manaus, Amazônia, Terra Santa... Que alimenta o corpo, equilibra a alma e transmite a paz" (Manôa, Manaus, Amazonia, Sacred Land... that feeds the body, soothes the soul and spreads peace)
This year´s theme focuses on Amazonia conquered by the Spaniards, with controversial aspects such as the devastation of the rainforest and the extraction of medicinal plants by foreign laboratories. On a more cheerful note, it showcases the beauty of this region, its wildlife and plants: one of the greatest natural heritage assets of the planet.

COLORS : BLUE AND WHITE

6-VIRADOURO SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The Unidos da Viradouro Samba School represents the City of Niterói, facing Rio de Janeiro on the other side of the Guanabara Bay. Established on June 24, 1946, its red and white colors have taken a title in the Special Group, and it almost always appears in the Champion´s Parade.

THEME: "Pediu pra Pará, parou... Com a Viradouro eu vou pro Círio de Nazaré!" (Off to Pará I go, heigh-ho… With Viradouro, to the Círio de Nazaré Festival!)
This year´s theme is a trip through Para State in Amazonia, showcasing its indigenous culture and recounting the saga of its people, particularly the picturesque Círio de Nazaré Festival – the largest religion event in Brazil. For several days every October, the Pará State Capital, Belém, is packed with pilgrims from all over North and Northeast Brazil, fervently honoring the Virgin of Nazareth.

COLORS: RED AND WHITE

7-MOCIDADE SAMBA SCHOOL

GENERAL INFO: The Mocidade Independente Samba School was famed for its incredible percurssion section (bateria) headed by Mestre André during the 1960s and 1970s. It then began to win titles and joined the top Group. Established on November 10, 1955 and headquartered in Padre Miguel, West Zone, Rio de Janeiro, its colors and white.

THEME: "Não corra, não mate, não morra. Pegue carona com a Mocidade! Educação no trânsito." (Don´t race, don´t kill, don´t die. Hitch a ride with Mocidade! Traffic Education.)
After last year´s Carnival Parade urging the donation of human organs for transplant, it decided to launch another campaign: this year, calling for politeness and respect behind the wheel, as traffic deaths are the main mortality factor in Brazil. This theme promises to be highly original, and will even feature historical crashes that took place in the narrow streets of downtown Rio early in the XIX century.

COLORS: GREEN AND WHITE