Francisca Xavier Queiroz de Jesus, known professionally as Chica Xavier (January 22, 1932 – August 8, 2020), was a Brazilian actress and producer. Xavier worked in stage, film, and television. She was known primarily for her work in

Rede Globo TV Globo (, "Globe TV", or simply Globo), formerly known as Rede Globo, is a Brazilian free-to-air television network, launched by media proprietor Roberto Marinho on 26 April 1965. It is owned by media conglomerate Grupo Globo. The TV stati ...

's telenovelas, but was active in stage for 60 years. Xavier was born in

Salvador, Bahia Salvador (English: ''Savior'') is a Brazilian municipality and capital city of the state of Bahia. Situated in the Zona da Mata in the Northeast Region of Brazil, Salvador is recognized throughout the country and internationally for its cuisi ...

. She was married to actor Clementino Kelé. Xavier started working at 14 years as bookbinder at the Official Press of the State of Bahia. She moved to

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

in 1953 and studied theater with Pascoal Carlos Magno. Her theater debut was on September 25, 1956 at the Teatro Municipal. Xavier acted in ''

Orfeu da Conceição ' (Orpheus of the Conception) is a stage play with music in three acts by Vinicius de Moraes and music by Antônio Carlos Jobim. It premiered in 1956 in Rio de Janeiro. The play became the basis for the films ''Orfeu Negro'' (''Black Orpheus'', 1 ...

'' alongside Haroldo Costa, Léa Garcia, Cyro Monteiro, Dirce Paiva, Clementino Kelé, among others. Xavier played the role of Dama Negra, which symbolized Death; she recited verses from

Vinícius de Moraes Marcus Vinícius da Cruz e Mello Moraes (19 October 1913 – 9 July 1980), better known as Vinícius de Moraes () and nicknamed O Poetinha ("The little poet"), was a Brazilian poet, diplomat, lyricist, essayist, musician, singer, and playwrigh ...

and danced to ''atabaques'', or Afro-Brazilian drumming. Xavier's film debut was in ''Assalto ao Trem Pagador'' in 1962, directed by

Roberto Farias Roberto Farias (27 March 1932 – 14 May 2018) was a Brazilian film director, film producer, producer and screenwriter. He directed 15 films during his career. His 1982 film ''Pra Frente, Brasil'' was entered into the 33rd Berlin Internatio ...

. She then worked in several

productions. In 1973 Xavier debuted on TV in the telenovela ''Os Ossos do Barão''. She played more than 50 characters on television, and was a cast member in ''

Sinhá Moça ''Sinhá Moça'' (English title: ''Little Missy'') is a Brazilian telenovela produced and broadcast by Rede Globo. It premiered on March 13, 2006, replacing ''Alma Gêmea'', and ended on October 13, 2006, replaced by ''O Profeta''. It is written ...

'', '' Dancin' Days'', ''

Renascer ''Renascer'' (English: ''To be reborn'') is a Brazilian telenovela produced and broadcast by TV Globo in 1993, written by Benedito Ruy Brabosa and directed by Luiz Fernando Carvalho Luiz Fernando Carvalho (born July 28, 1960, in Rio de Janeiro ...

'', ''

Pátria Minha ''Pátria Minha'' (English: ''My Homeland'') is a Brazilian telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meani ...

'', ''

Força de um Desejo ''Força de um Desejo'' is a Brazilian telenovela produced by TV Globo, and was shown in the schedule of 18 hours between May 10, 1999 and January 29, 2000, in 227 chapters. It was written by Gilberto Braga and as collaborators with Alcides Noguei ...

'', and the miniseries ''Tenda dos Milagres'', where she played the ''mãe-de-santo'' Magé Bassã. Xavier published ''Chica Xavier canta sua prosa: Cantigas, louvações e rezas para os orixás'' in 1999. The book had a preface by her friend

Miguel Falabella Miguel Falabella (born October 10, 1955, Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian actor, presenter, screen writer, voice actor, film maker, theater actor, producer, writer and director. He is known, among many other works, for playing Caco Antibes in the ...

, and was illustrated by her daughter Izabela d'Oxóssi. She was the subject of a biography in 2013 by Teresa Montero titled ''Chica Xavier: Mãe do Brasil''. Xavier was born at a

Candomblé Candomblé () is an African diasporic religion that developed in Brazil during the 19th century. It arose through a process of syncretism between several of the traditional religions of West Africa, especially that of the Yoruba, and the Roman ...

''terreiro'', or temple. She was the leader of a Candomblé religious community in Rio de Janeiro, the Cercado de Boiadeiro.

Filmography

References

External links

* 1936 births 2020 deaths People from Salvador, Bahia Afro-Brazilian actresses Brazilian television actresses Brazilian telenovela actresses Brazilian film actresses {{Brazil-actor-stub