Mestre Sucuri Tokyo, Japan

Mestre Sucuri Tokyo, Japan 

At the age of 17, Arturo Urena Hamelitz developed a strong passion for Capoeira and dedicated his life and career to promoting this Afro-Brazilian culture. He moved to Tokyo in 1999 to teach and perform capoeira as a professional artist. Since then, he has performed in numerous cultural shows across Asia, with a focus on Japan.

 

 Mestre Sucuri, a Master of capoeira, travels annually to Europe, the US, and Asia from his home base in Tokyo to share his extensive knowledge of Afro-Brazilian arts. He strongly believes in constantly improving and growing, as evidenced by his graduation from Waseda University in 2012 with an M.A. in International Relations, where he focused on the "Globalization of Afro-Brazilian Popular Culture in Japan". He has also authored two books: "The Path of Capoeira: Teaching, Philosophy, and Lessons Learnt" in 2014 and "Capoeira Fire" in 2022. Mestre Sucuri is one of the first non-Brazilians to produce and record original capoeira music. He has released multiple music projects, including "Depoimento" by Capoeira Zoador V.1, "Quando a Chuva Cai" by Capoeira Zoador V.2, "Ile Mojuba" by Capoeira Zoador V.3, "Vamo Que Vamo" by Capoeira Zoador V.4, and "Mestre Vibes V.1", a Latin Jazz CD in collaboration with Tokyo-based artists, all of which are available on major streaming platforms.

 

 Through passion and determination, Mestre Sucuri founded Capoeira Zoador Academy in 2003 and has grown it to be the premier international Capoeira school in Tokyo. His dedication and love for Capoeira only grow with each new student that enters Capoeira Zoador Academy. Mestre Sucuri regularly travels to share his experience and knowledge of Capoeira around the world and has Capoeira Zoador instructors in the US, South Korea, Japan, and Thailand.