A Black Diamond dancer whose broken leg rendered her immobile has come a long way after an impressive finish at a recent competition.
After sustaining a spiral fracture to bones in her leg from a leap off a platform onto a stunt airbag at a community event, Kealey Atkinson was worried her dancing career was over.
The 15-year-old Starcast Dance Academy ballet student showed hard work and determination prevails after receiving the highest mark in contemporary dance and placing third overall in the 15 and older solo category at the Peak Invitational Dance Competition in Bearspaw earlier this spring. It was her first dance competition since the incident.
“I was really surprised that I won in my category,” she said. “There were two amazing dancers and they had tricks like aerials and were extremely flexible. I just went out there and danced my best. I had no tricks and little flexibility.”
Atkinson knew she hadn’t reached the level she was at a year ago, but there had been improvements.
“I feel like my artistry and musicality as a dancer have definitely improved,” she said. “I’m still trying to get where I was flexibility wise and my strength is almost where it was. Next year I can only imagine how far I will be if I keep up with everything I’ve done and get into a good summer program.”
It’s been a long road for Atkinson since last summer. The Oilfields High School student said she was at her strongest as a dancer before the accident happened.
“It was definitely my highest point for dance,” she said. “My flexibility had improved tremendously. I felt really strong as a dancer.”
The accident was a devastating blow.
The doctors were able to set her leg properly, which prevented the need for surgery, but she was in a full leg cast for a week and unable to put pressure on her leg.
“It hurt so bad,” she said. “It would feel like there was tons of pressure on it. Moving at all hurt. I was scared to go back. I didn’t want to see how bad I was compared to where I was. ”
As her peers effortlessly performed plies and jumps, Atkinson was starting from scratch.
“It was really hard and it really brought me down,” she said. “There was stuff I just wanted to do but I couldn’t. My foot wouldn’t flex very far. If I did a plie that would really hurt.”
Through physiotherapy and assistance from her dance family, Atkinson slowly got back on her feet.
She began with floor barre to build strength without standing and progressed from there.
“I did a lot of sitting out at first,” she said. “I was really frustrated. I cried a lot. I invested so much of my life into this I couldn’t just give up.”
Atkinson had her sights set on the Jeunesse Classique Ballet Society’s annual production of The Nutcracker in December after being selected to perform the previous year. She knew her chances of being selected during the September auditions weren’t good.
Despite her physical limitations, Atkinson made the cut and as the months passed her strength developed.
“I was waiting for the day that I could go back to point shoes,” she said. “Since I was little I always wanted to be a ballerina. As soon as I was allowed to go back everything started to come back into place.
Shirley Agate-Proust, who is in charge of the Starcast Dance Academy’s ballet program, said Atkinson is a conscientious, passionate and driven dance student.
“She got in there, even though it was very hard, and she pushed and really worked to sustain and build her strength,” she said. “When you’ve had a broken leg with breakage in two places, it takes considerable effort to go back to where you were.”
Agate-Proust said Atkinson maintained her dream by pushing herself as far as she could.
“She let the passion come through and show what a beautiful dancer she could be,” she said. “It takes a very strong character to persevere. In the face of adversity to be able to push on and continue to dream and have that inner strength is amazing and beautiful.”
Atkinson is preparing for another show after being selected to perform in Jeunesse’s spring ballet production Coppelia June 4 to 6.
“I’m absolutely pumped,” she said. “I started the season on a high note and I want to keep it like that.”
