Born and raised in Brazil, Contra Mestre Espaço (Fábio) discovered Capoeira at 18 years of age and instantly knew he was going to dedicate his life to training and teaching.  After a few years of intensive training, he began teaching Capoeira to youth at a number of elementary schools and to mentally and physically handicapped adolescents and adults at CERPAM.  He also became very involved in performing Capoeira, along with a number of related dances including Maculele and fire dancing, at a wide variety of venues.  He choreographed and performed in shows for well-known music concerts, Brazil’s national tourist fair, the Salao de Turismo, São Paulo’s Carnaval parade, and cultural centers throughout São Paulo.

He departed from his mother’s home in São Paulo in January 2006 to cycle for almost two years, crossing ten countries and pedaling over 12,000 miles to Petaluma, California. Since he arrived in the United States at the end of 2007, he has been teaching classes to children and adults at the Petaluma School of Ballet. He has also worked at the Performing Arts Workshop and with Project Commotion, Bay Area organizations dedicated to providing low-income and special needs youth with cultural and physical enrichment programs.