Madame Satã

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João Francisco dos Santos (1900-1976), also known as the infamous drag performer and capoeirista Madame Satã, was born into a family of ex-slaves in the state of Pernambuco, Northeast of Brazil. Having been accused with conspiracy of murder, spending 27 years in prison, being a former gangster and father of 7, he found refuge in the dark Bohemian culture of Rio de Janeiro amidst a lively world of pimps, prostitutes, deviants and samba composers.

João is most commemorated as a figure who fought to redefine himself while battling the stigmas of being a son of former black slaves, illiterate and homosexual. João is quoted for once saying "I was born an outlaw, that's how I'll live." In between his drag performances, his days as a hustler and his convictions of murder, his image as the legendary cabaret performance artist Madame Satã meaning Madame Satan having been influenced by the 1930's film by Cecil DeMille about a woman disguising herself as a notorious temptress to win back her errant husband. João's infamous character represented an expression of resistance in this post abolitionist era in Brazil where black people, prostitutes, drug users and adicts and other 'deviant' outcasts were deemed useless to society.

Thus, João Francisco dos Santos became a living myth that supported and represented the values and lives of such outcasts of society becoming himself a revolutionary icon for the socially marginalized.

[edit] Film Adaptation

João Francisco dos Santos's story was told in the film Madame Satã, directed by Brazilian director Karim Ainouz and was released in 2002. Lázaro Ramos plays the titular lead.