The great fadista, Amelia Rodrigues, made her screen debut in Capas Negras, which took its name from the black capes worn by the students in the university city of Coimbra, where the film is set. The action begins in a tavern where a group of former students are reminiscing about their time at the university. One of the students, Jose Duarte then breaks into song, performing an impromptu fado in the local Coimbra style. The tavern owner's niece, the aptly named Maria Lisboa promptly retaliates with a fado of the Lisbon variety. The melodramatic plot then centers on the frustrated romance between these two characters, and the soundtrack is essentially a musical duel between these two different styles of Portugal's national song.
Amália Rodrigues
as Maria de Lisboa
Alberto Ribeiro
as José Duarte
Artur Agostinho
as Manecas
Vasco Morgado
as Jorge
Barroso Lopes
as Coca-Bichinhos
Humberto Madeira
as Já-Cá-Canta
António Sacramento
as Magistrate
Graziela Mendes
as Rosa Tricana
Joaquim Miranda
as Judge
Fernando Silva
as Cunha, the pawnbroker
Génia Silva
as Leonor
António Gonçalves
as Dancer
