Parental Warning

True story: The first two seasons of Sesame Street: Old School were released on DVD with a parental warning. Apparently the Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch and Big Bird's imaginary friend, Mr. Snuffleupagus, aren't politically correct enough for today's children. With the PC police sanitizing entertainment into bland, creepy oblivion, Circus Incognitus doesn't stand a chance. After all, isn't a Charlie Chaplin-esque clown variety show way too much for kids' tender minds?

Not at all, says Shelley Woodworth, marketing director at the Vilar Center, which hosts the circus tonight. "It's just a wonderful opportunity for parents to expose kids to a live performance that's fun, funny and has a great message."

Sure, there's a great moral, it's incredibly entertaining and instead of talking trains or overweight purple monsters, the one-man circus (starring Jamie Adkins) takes a creative approach to getting the message across. Adkins uses two ladders like stilts; he pops ping-pong balls in his mouth; he walks around covered with a box; he tumbles on chairs and balances a piece of paper on his nose — you know, all that terrible stuff.

Circus Incognitus starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Vilar Center, 68 Avondale Lane in Beaver Creek; tickets are $18. For more information, go to www.vilarpac.org or call 1-970-949-1999.
Sun., Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m., 2008