Father Felipe Calisto, 34 years old, parish priest of the Church of Saint Anthony in Caridade, in Ceará, is competing as a finalist in the choice of the Unidos da Tijuca's samba-enredo for the 2024 Carnival. Passionate about carnival since childhood, he discovered he would participate in the dispute when the school announced it would bring to Sapucaí the saga told in the book "The Head of the Saint," by Socorro Acioli, inspired by a real story from the city where he serves as parish priest.
The priest was at the school's headquarters for the first time in 2023, when he traveled to Rio to attend a show by singer Maria Bethânia, of whom he is a fan. On that occasion, he coincided with the final selection of this year's samba-enredo, which marked him deeply and motivated him to plan his return.
In May, when the association announced the theme based on the story of Caridade, Felipe bought plane tickets in advance to follow the samba selection closely, scheduled for Saturday. However, he did not imagine that he would also be involved in the competition as the composer of one of the competing works.
The invitation for the priest to participate as a finalist was made by the samba school itself, integrating him unexpectedly into the creative process of the samba-enredo that will be presented at next year's Carnival.
