Chloe Blair is, at least for now, living her dream as a ballerina, staying positive after battling for years against a deteriorating spinal condition, scoliosis. The 26-year-old, who was promoted to soloist at Joburg Ballet at the beginning of the year, is aware that the worsening curvature of her spine hangs over her dancing future like a guillotine.
In fact, it was because of ballet that her scoliosis was first detected when she was 12 years old. “I was being fitted for ballet costumes when the woman fitting me commented, ‘this is so weird, I’ve done your measurements and the costume is [awkwardly] fitted on you’,” said Blair, who's been part of the Swan Lake production that wrapped up in Cape Town last week. The young Blair was measured again and the seamstress told her: “There’s something very asymmetrical about you. Your rib cage is out of alignment.”
Scoliosis affects about 4% of people, most commonly appearing in girls around puberty. Blair’s scoliosis, as often occurs, is accompanied by a rotation of the ribs, with the right side of the cage becoming far more prominent than the left. “It [the scoliosis] started progressing rapidly,” said Blair. “By the time I was 16 the specialist said ‘OK, you have to have a spinal fusion’ because the curvature was over 45º by that stage.”
Surgery would have meant the end of Blair's dancing career, so the determined teen refused; she'd been in love with ballet since taking it up at the age of five. “I saw the little ballerinas running out of class and I said to my mom ‘I want to do that’. I had such a passion from the time I first started dancing, because it’s a very disciplined and controlled art form that becomes layered over the years, like building a house on a solid foundation. I enjoyed the long-term work of it,” said Blair, who still dreams of becoming a principal dancer.
The curve is progressing but technology is also improving, so I’m hoping that at some point they’ll meet and I’ll be able to take action, which might make my career more viable and the condition less severe.
Blair wore a body brace, mostly at night, from the age of 15 to 18. “I danced from 1pm to 8pm,” recalled Blair, whose heavy schedule was accommodated at her school, St Teresa’s, in Rosebank. “I wore the brace to school sometimes underneath my school uniform because I was concerned that people would make fun of me. It was very hot and extremely uncomfortable and I'd get pins and needles in one arm,” she added.
Her decision to avoid the scalpel has come at a price, with the curvature ticking beyond the 50º mark. “I’m fighting against time,” admitted Blair, who's armed herself against the condition in every way she can. She has frequent physiotherapy to ward off pain and she's been to the US to learn about a new scoliosis treatment in a bid to retard or halt the deterioration. “The curve is progressing but technology is also improving, so I’m hoping that at some point they’ll meet and I’ll be able to take action, which might make my career more viable and the condition less severe.”
The tiny dancer possesses a bubbly veneer, but she admits to carrying insecurities and uncertainties resulting from the scoliosis. “At times it weighs on me. I’ve had moments when I’m at the hospital, I’ve done the X-rays and I cry because the doctors say to me, ‘It’s not a matter of your career, it’s a matter of your quality of life when you reach 50 or 60.’”
There are also occasions in the ballet studio when Blair stands in front of the giant mirrors and focuses on the asymmetry of her body. “Because many of us are obviously super critical, some days it’s really hard because I just can’t stand to look at myself.” That’s when she reminds herself that other people, including her colleagues, face their own challenges. “I realised it’s mostly in my mind as well. I judge myself so harshly.”
She performed a dance, choreographed by a friend, that showcased her torso and she had to coach her male partners about the shape of her body so they would understand her axis and spin her with their hands on her hips rather than on her waist, which is uneven. They find the large right side of her rib cage convenient. “Sometimes my partners say ‘it feels like a handle when we’re lifting you’,” said Blair who, during Covid, began doing choreography as well as a BCom degree. She graduated last year. “I've had to make plans for my future living with scoliosis, because it might be challenging to even get to my late 30s,” Blair, who won a Naledi award for the first piece she choreographed, added.
“When that happened I thought perhaps choreography is something I can look into after my dancing career, which will allow me to stay in the industry and keep doing what I’m passionate about.” Next on the agenda for this determined woman is a ballet gala in October, for which she's already started preparing. There's no doubt that this talented, headstrong creative is dancing, rather magnificently, to her own tune.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.