Brazil fest takes a footloose direction

The annual Brazilian Summer Festival programs at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre have been oases of pleasure for fans of Brazilian music, featuring acts ranging from the percussive exuberance of Olodum to the soaring lyricism of Caetano Veloso.

On Saturday night, the festival’s 11th installment took a somewhat different tack, bringing the all-female, distinctly dance-oriented music of the Bahian ensemble As Meninas.

Almost “all-female,” that is, since rhythm-section backing was provided by a quintet of male players. But the front line of As Meninas -- vocalist Flaviana, backup singers Cybele and Angelica, saxophonist Jujuba and percussionists Ratinha, Titi and Dilmara -- left no doubts as to gender.

They did not, however, appear in the elaborately costumed headdresses and glitter often present in the Brazilian shows (and colorfully present in an exuberant opening set by the dancers of the Oya Brazil Samba Show with the groove fusion group Bayu).

Instead, six of the As Meninas performers, garbed in gym shorts, tank tops and sneakers, could easily have been participants in a vigorous workout video. Lead singer Flaviana, bringing a different slant to the production, wore a flowing outfit reminiscent of the costuming in an Indian musical film.

The emphasis upon As Meninas’ visual presentation is worth noting primarily because the ensemble’s music would have difficulty standing on its own without the fast-paced dance steps by Cybele and Angelica, and Flaviana’s constant roving of the stage. Moving quickly through one selection after another in a program embracing their hit tune “Ta Faltando Homen,” the dance club anthem “Xibom Bom Bom” and potpourri tributes to Daniela Mercury, Timbalada and Olodum, their performance had the nonstop, don’t-stop-the-beat intensity of a lengthy dance club set.

Given the generally monochromatic vocalizing of Flaviana, whose dynamic range reached from intense to super-intense, the programming of a long sequence of interrelated songs, spiced by an occasionally familiar Brazilian item, was a good idea. And it worked particularly well for the capacity crowd, many of whom took advantage of the opportunity to indulge in their own terpsichorean moves.

Interestingly, audience members offered some of the best dancing, especially at the top stage, where the smooth samba moves of a young woman in a red dress and yellow tank top eclipsed the carefully packaged stepping of As Meninas.

And one of the evening’s most charming moments occurred when four young girls, ages perhaps 3 to 7, climbed on stage, happily offering their own innocent versions of the dance.