Mobile apps which map crowdsourced data in real time, helping users avoid potential violence, have become ominously popular.Īs Brazil's economy slumped in the last few years, the cash-strapped city government needed federal bailouts to balance its books, including police salaries, while crime levels spiked. In 2017, 6,590 people were killed in the city (and 64,000 nationally – about six times higher than the US). The tragic recent history of Rio has been well-documented. Frequent police raids only escalate the tension. Morro do Adeus is at the heart of a perpetual conflict between rival drug trafficking gangs, which control different sections of Alemão – a vast network of communities with a population that may be as high as 120,000. The chaos subsided moments later, but a small boy who'd been curiously watching the young ballerinas from a nearby rooftop, while flying his kite, was injured by a stray bullet – along with another innocent bystander. Thankfully, no one from the group was hurt. We had no idea where the terrifying crackle came from, but it was all too close.

As Tuany put her pupils through their paces, stretching limbs and rehearsing routines – like any other ballet class, anywhere in the world – a flurry of gunshots ripped through the air. Last year, while filming for the new VICE documentary Ballet and Bullets: Dancing Out of the Favela, our crew tasted that bitter reality at an outdoor sports court in the Morro do Adeus neighbourhood, where the girls live.

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