Group maintains June traditions in the Federal District Far from the Maranhão festivals, the sound of rattles, toadas and orchestras continues to echo more than a thousand kilometers away. In the Federal District, a group of people from Maranhão keep alive one of Maranhão's most traditional cultural manifestations: bumba meu boi. 📲 Click here and subscribe to the g1 Maranhão channel on WhatsApp The Boi Encanto do Itapoã performs in the regions of Itapoã and Paranoá, on the outskirts of Brasília. Created and maintained by people from Maranhão who live in the Federal District, the group brings the orchestral accent to the country's capital, one of the most popular styles of the game. The tradition began in 2005. Since then, members have come together every year to perform and preserve Maranhão culture even far from their homeland. Among the players is student Yuri Gaspar, 9 years old. Son of Maranhão, he plays the dumb character and says he likes the role because of the interaction with the public. "I like being dumb because I've always liked it. People come and caress me. It's nice", she says. Son of Maranhão, Yuri Gaspar plays the dumb character Reproduction Among the new members is also student Ana Sofia Almeida, 14 years old, who was enchanted by the joy of the presentations and decided to join the group. "I saw the joy, the women dancing, and I've always had this curiosity. I joined and I'm very happy here," he says. The group's creator and singer is Eliana Costa, born in Cururupu, on the coast of Maranhão, and resident of Itapoã for more than two decades. According to her, maintaining a bumba meu boi group in the Federal District is still a challenge due to the lack of resources, but the involvement of the players has guaranteed the continuity of the project. “We brought the culture of Maranhão here and have been fighting all these years, strengthening this tradition with small and large presentations, circulating through schools, communities and public squares in Itapoã and Paranoá”, he states. Meet the bumba-meu-boi group created by people from Maranhão in the Federal District Disclosure The initiative has also won over people without any family ties to Maranhão. This is the case of Igor Soares, born in Brasília, who joined the group as an Indian after learning about the cultural manifestation. "I've been here since last year. I didn't know the culture, but I already appreciated it. I see how much affection the people of Maranhão have and that's why I'm here. I invite people to get to know the oxen of Brasília", he says. Last Saturday (13), the group carried out the traditional baptism of the ox, a ceremony that brought together godfathers, godmothers and residents of the Itapoã community. The expectation now is to increase public participation and further strengthen the presence of bumba meu boi in the Federal District. One of the godmothers of the celebration was Gilza Sousa, president of Casa do Maranhão in Brasília. For her, preserving tradition is a way of keeping the cultural identity of Maranhão residents who live outside the state alive. "For me it is an honor to be a godmother. We can never leave our Maranhão tradition. The Maranhão colony is the third largest in Brasília", he highlighted. The initiative has also won over people without any family ties to Maranhão. Disclosure