São Luís hosts skate day, Black theater festival and São João celebrations
The historic centre of São Luís, Brazil, became a hub of cultural activity in June‑July 2026. On Sunday, June 20, the Go Skateboarding Day event organised by the Federação Maranhense de Skate gathered amateurs, women and children for competitions and urban rides that started at Praça Deodoro and moved through historic streets such as Praça Gonçalves Dias, Praça Odorico Mendes and Ladeira da Maria Aragão, complemented by live music by Preto Nando, Anderlucy e Banda and graffiti interventions.
Meanwhile, the inaugural Festival de Artes Cênicas Preta do Maranhão opened its call for submissions until 9 July, inviting Black, Afro‑Indigenous and Afro‑Diasporic theatre, dance and performance groups from across Brazil. The festival, scheduled for 13‑17 October, offers cash awards from R$800 to R$5 000, provides venues and technical support, and is backed by the Ministry of Culture, Afrodite Produções and sponsor Vale.
On Tuesday, June 16, the traditional São João do Maranhão celebrations continued with official arraiais in the Ipem and Cohab districts. The program featured bumba‑boi, Portuguese dance ensembles, quadrilhas juninas and forró performances by artists such as Jhoie Araújo, Jannaina Santos, Raízes da Terra and the Cia Requebrasil, reinforcing the region’s popular culture.