SWEET CAN! Affordable Holiday Entertainment to Keep Your Spirits Up

YES, SWEET CAN REALLY CAN!

by Linda Ayres-Frederick

Something that will keep you warm and happy this holiday season is the new Sweet Can show directed by Wendy Parkman: Yes, Sweet Can which just opened their winter run at the Dance Mission Theater. This delightful quartet of attractive, athletically talented circus artists with resident composer/musician EO brings a sense of joy and enjoyment to their show that is positively infectious. After a musical intro, trumpet solo included, the program begins with the four performers staring out at the rain through a window pane--reacting in unison to the soundscape of lightening and thunder. Clad in bright red, orange, green and blue, they are soon reading the exasperating news and attempting to cheer each other up with as many tactics as they have in their varied circus vocabulary: acrobatics, tumbling, jumping, aerial silks (Kerri Kresinski), slack rope (Beth Clarke), flying broom (Matt White) and a super duper hula hooper (we’re talking at least ten hoops on Ms. Natasha Kaluza) not to mention all sorts of balancing acts.

With her winning smile, Ms. Clarke, SC’s co-founder, manages to make hot chocolate standing on one foot in a high heeled clog while cradling the cup on her other bent knee, pour the milk from the silver coffee pot she’s been holding on her head and still balance a cookie tin in her other hand and the cocoa tin on her shoulder. Talk about multi-tasking! Ms.Kresinski flies through the air on her aerial slik with astounding speed and agility. Throughout the show the performers travel toward expanded perspectives all propelled by the infectious musical concoctions of EO--a one-man orchestra. These sojourns reveal the magic in the mundane, which is accessible to everyone, by using the ordinary objects that make up their world. Their journey through a surreal storm where gravity is challenged, garbage cans dance, and an ordinary broom can take on the attributes of the most adored of lovers. Highly Recommended!

With zany pratfall humor reminiscent of the Ernie Kovacs and the Carol Burnett shows from years past, Yes, Sweet Can continues through Jan.3 at Dance Mission Theatre, 3316 24th St. at Mission, SF 94110. Show times vary. See website for full details. http://sweetcanproductions.com. 415.273-4633. Tickets $15- $20
1-800-838-3006 http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/90101.