Laughter turned out to be great medicine for Susan Aglukark.

 Midway through Dancing With Angels, a refreshing splash of bluegrass from Aglukark's two-hour Centrepointe Theatre's performance last night, the 33-year-old Inuk singer couldn't stop giggling after a verse mixup.

 Matters weren't helped when a) mandolin player Paul Chapman kept egging Aglukark into hysterics while trying to figure out which direction to go, and b) the harmonious "big finish" to the song broke down so many times Chapman sheepishly faced away from Aglukark before one final, semi-successful attempt.

 "That's a first!" an astonished Aglukark said later. "Then again, this usually happens whenever we do this song."

 Incidentally, it turned out to be the perfect icebreaker in what was otherwise a pleasant adult contemporary performance guaranteed to please all ages and all races.

 Many times, Aglukark's between-song banter would often set a context to each of her more serious numbers from This Child and her latest disc Unsung Heroes.

 The comforting Never Be The Same spoke of victims of tuberculosis having to spend time in hospitals far from their northern homes; This Child dealt with tragedy and suicide; while O Siem and Turn of the Century talked of her people from her northern small-town homeland and what lies ahead for those who still call what is now Nunavut home.

 BACK-UP SUPPORT

 Joined by her oft-slick backup group -- multi-instrumenatlists Chapman, Mark LaLama, Pete Fusco and Craig Bignell -- Aglukark's fine, if echoy, soprano sailed along as cool as her arctic stage backdrop.

 Sometimes she veered into too-mellow, strictly commerical territory with her melodies -- Stand Up and The Ghost of Cain immediately come to mind. But her positive attitude kept the audience attentive, as did her foray into some fine country (Arctic Rose) plus many a nod to her Inuit friends in the audience.

 The night was so pleasant, she courageously brought out her 3 1/2 year-old son Cameron on stage.

 When he whispered a few incomprehensible words to his mother, Aglukark replied: "Okay! But why are we whispering?"

 Ah, that ever-so-subtle humour emerges again. And what was with the roadie sporting the Susan Aglukark mask? Just goes to show you at least Aglukark doesn't take everything so seriously.

JAM! Rating: 3 out of 5