Mestre Paulo Siqueira

Paulo Siqueira was born on May 6, 1955, in Rio de Janeiro, growing up between the North Zone neighborhoods of Bonsucesso, Ramos, Olaria, and Penha, and the South Zone areas of Flamengo and Botafogo. His first encounter with capoeira came during carnival festivities when he observed practitioners warming up for a parade at a Portela samba school gathering in Candelária.

Around 1972, encouraged by his friend Rubens—a fireman and capoeirista from the Cantagalo favela—Paulo began training at Mestre Roque's academy on Morro do Pavão in Copacabana. At that time, Mestre Roque was already planning to hand over the academy to his most advanced student, Adilson "Camisa Preta". Paulo trained primarily under Adilson, with Roque providing overall guidance. Adilson became his sole mestre and would have "great influence in the life of Paulo Siqueira, as capoeirista and person".

Alongside his capoeira training, Paulo pursued a performance career. He received a classical dance scholarship from the renowned choreographer Mercedes Baptista, who emphasized versatility for capoeiristas seeking professional performance work. He performed in theater productions and concert halls, including the "Bahia Saravá" show and events at the Intercontinental Hotel. In Rio's performance circles, he became known simply as "Siqueira".

After years of dedicated training, Adilson graduated Paulo Siqueira as a mestre—a recognition Paulo received from his teacher before Adilson's death in the 1990s.

In the early 1980s, a German theater producer called "Herr Ulm" saw Paulo play capoeira and hired him for a tour in Germany. He was based in Hannover on a one-year contract, where he began teaching his first classes to a small group of fifteen people. In 1985, a woman who owned the Zeppelin theater in Hamburg hired him to teach and offered him a place to live. He settled in Hamburg and founded Escola de Capoeira Nzinga, later expanding to Hannover and Kiel.

In 1987, Mestre Paulo Siqueira launched the Capoeira Sommer-Meeting in Hamburg—a groundbreaking seven-day event combining workshops, lectures, and rodas. The event attracted 300 participants, with a closing performance at Hamburg's "Fabrik" venue drawing up to 600 attendees. It was the largest capoeira event outside Brazil at the time and one of the first major capoeira gatherings in Europe. The Sommer-Meeting continued annually until 2004, setting standards for capoeira events outside Brazil and significantly elevating the quality and visibility of capoeira in Europe.

Mestre Paulo Siqueira was one of the first to bring capoeira to Europe and make it known on the continent. He continues to teach Capoeira Angola in Hamburg, Hannover, and Kiel, and is working on his first book about the history of capoeira in Europe.