São Paulo City Hall Postpones Carnaval 2021 Celebrations Due to Coronavirus

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The São Paulo City Hall has decided to postpone both the street Carnaval and the 2021 Samba School parades due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The new date has not yet been set, but in the case of parades, the São Paulo Samba Schools League proposes that the festival be held from late May to early July, on a date yet to be set.

São Paulo Carnaval is one of the greatest in the country. This year, the city broke a record in terms of audience and number of blocks: there were over 15 million revelers in the streets and 600 blocks. The city spent R$36.6 million (US$7 million), and there was a R$2.3 billion financial return for the city.

The announcement was made by Mayor Bruno Covas at a press conference held in the Bandeirantes Palace, on Friday, July 24th.

“We are determining the new date with the blocks as well as with the schools and with other cities, and it should take place as of May next year. It is unlikely to occur in June because it coincides with the São João festivals in the Northeast. We are setting either late May or early June for the Carnival in the city of São Paulo,” said Covas.

In Salvador, the Mayor is also considering postponing Carnival to July. In Rio de Janeiro, schools expect to reach a decision regarding the date of the parade in September. Associations representatives and the LIESA (Independent League of the Samba Schools of Rio de Janeiro) claim that without a vaccine against Covid-19 it is impossible to safely hold the show.

The president of the São Paulo League, Sydney Carriuolo, met with representatives of the Special and Access Group’s samba schools and presented the proposed date change to the city hall. He said that the decision needed to be made now so that the schools could prepare in time to ensure the parade. Nevertheless, the audience may expect a different Carnaval from previous years.

“Carnaval as usual is impossible, we’ve already considered adjustments. Costumes and floats take time and financial resources,” he said.

Postponement because of the pandemic

Samba schools and organizers of São Paulo’s street Carnival had been favoring the postponement of Carnaval due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Governor João Doria said on July 15th that mega-events like New Year’s Eve and Carnaval would only be celebrated with the release of the coronavirus vaccine.

“It is the greatest tragedy in this country’s entire history. There is nothing to celebrate. And much heed to those who before such a picture still want to celebrate New Year’s Eve or Carnaval. We don’t have to celebrate either New Year or Carnaval when faced with a pandemic. Only with a vaccine ready and administered, and immunization achieved, will we be able to hold celebrations that are part of the country’s calendar, but not at this time,” said Doria.

Source: G1