Brazilian singer and samba dancer (born 1986)
Marcelly Morena (born c.1986) is a Brazilian singer and samba dancer who, in 2016, became the first transgender woman to dance as a passista in Rio de Janeiro's Carnival.[2][3][4][5] Passistas lead a marching band for the entire length of the Carnival parade.
Morena was born in and grew up in Duque de Caxias,[2][3] a suburb city of Rio de Janeiro, and danced from a young age.[1] By the age of nine, she felt out of place in the male body she was born with.[2][3] She left home by sixteen[3] and was alienated from her family because her father did not accept her gender identity.[2] Later, she would visit her mother, who provided her with women's clothes and makeup.[2]
As a singer, Morena formerly performed as part of a transgender group named As Peguetes,[6] and more recently performs as half of the funk duo Karlos & Marcelly Morena.[5][6]
In 2016, she was invited by her Samba school Acadêmicos do Grande Rio to dance as their Carnival passista.[5]
In 2018, she became a spokesperson for Rio Sem Homophobia ("Rio without homophobia"), an education and outreach program by Rio's Centro de Cidadania LGBT ("LGBT Citizenship Centre").[5]
References
External links
