Young Dancer Goes on After Injury
- December 13th 2024
- Arts & Entertainment
Photo: Brett Williams
By Lee Burnett
Camille Alipalo had her heart set on dancing a solo part in front of a hometown crowd at the Sanford Performing Arts Center last Saturday. But she sprained a muscle during a rehearsal for A Victorian Christmas Nutcracker and could only perform in a less demanding role.
“It was definitely a challenge,” she said in phone conversation two days after the show.
Alipalo, 20, has been training in ballet since she was seven, the last four years with the Portland Ballet. After graduating a semester early from Sanford High School in 2022, she joined the company as an apprentice. She said she always looks forward to dancing in Nutcracker at SPAC, especially this year when she stepped up to a solo role. But during a rehearsal earlier in the week, she felt “a pop” and kept dancing until a break when she realized “I was in an enormous amount of pain.” She couldn’t put weight on her tender leg.
Alipalo soon improved with the help of orthopedic equipment and felt ready to dance parts that didn’t require her to be up on her toes. “I was so happy to perform in the party scene,” she said. Under her long dress, she was wearing a boot and a compression sock. “I hope no one noticed,” she said with a laugh.
Alipalo continues to improve and she hopes to be ready to dance a solo part when the Portland Ballet performs twice at Merrill Auditorium in Portland on Tuesday, December 17. She’s now a junior majoring in leadership and organizational studies at the University of Southern Maine. She trains four hours a day and hopes to continue in ballet “until my body gives out.”
