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S茫o Paulo's carnival competition

Join one of S茫o Paulo鈥檚 oldest samba schools, 脕guia de Ouro, as they prepare a magical carnival parade inspired by the city of Amsterdam.

Every year during Brazil鈥檚 carnival celebrations, samba schools are tasked with creating elaborate parades based around a unique theme, from which they build huge floats, compose a song, and choreograph an entire visual spectacle.

Tom Raine follows one of S茫o Paulo鈥檚 oldest samba schools, 脕guia de Ouro, in the final stages of creating their carnival parade ahead of their most important event of the year - parading in S茫o Paulo鈥檚 iconic Sambadrome in the attendance of thousands of people, and millions more watching on TV across Brazil.

This year they have chosen a theme titled Amsterdam: City of Liberty, celebrating the cities鈥 values of freedom, tolerance and modernity. It鈥檚 not just a celebration but a fierce competition, with rigorous judging and a football-style league system of promotion and relegation.

In The Studio goes behind the scenes to S茫o Paulo鈥檚 鈥渃arnival factory鈥 to find out what it takes to put on a parade, from one whole year of work to just one hour on the tarmac.

Presenter/producer: Tom Raine

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27 minutes

Last on

Sunday 18:32GMT

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