'SkyDancers ... Women Who Fly Through the Air!'
April 2-11, Dance Mission Theatre

LITTLE GIRLS OF a certain generation grew up dreaming of becoming like Amelia Earhart – fearlessly taking to the sky and invading a territory too often reserved for men. Some of them now realize those dreams of flight by dancing high above the ground, on trapezes and other apparatuses. For many the act of defying gravity proves incredibly liberating. During the next two weekends, a number of these adventurers are participating in the fourth annual "SkyDancers ... Women Who Fly Through the Air! A Feast and Festival of Aerial Dance." They use trapezes, hoops, bungee cords, ropes, and steel apparatuses, much of it custom-made. The festival, dedicated to women with cancer, is honoring Terry Sendgraff, a breast cancer survivor, who pioneered aerial dance in the '70s and has become a kind of mother figure to the current generation. Companies participating include Project Bandaloop, Flyaway Productions, Dance Brigade, and Zaccho Youth Company. Through April 11. Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 6 p.m., 3316 24th St., S.F. $18-$20. (415) 273-4633. (Rita Felciano)