Karina Sturdevant is a Des Moines native who trained with the Des Moines Ballet and with the Milwaukee Ballet summer intensive program. Karina danced corps de ballet to principal roles professionally with the following ballet companies: Ballet Iowa, Milwaukee Ballet, Wisconsin Ballet Theatre, Lexington Ballet, Mid Illinois Ballet, Summer Flight Ballet of Cincinnati, and Ballet Arkansas. Karina branched into the world of modern dance and performed with companies such as: Wisconsin Dance Theater, Rosalind Newman Dancers of New York City, and Oure Danse Kompagni in Denmark. Karina worked as Ballet Mistress with Ballet Arkansas, responsible for rehearsing/ staging The Nutcracker, as well as serving as the principal choreographer of Arts in Concert, a citywide collaboration between visual, vocal, and dance artists. Karina also received her Bachelor’s of Science degrees in history and religious studies from Iowa State University. She is the proud mother of her daughter, Aniko.
After retiring from the professional dance world Karina studied massage therapy at the Iowa College of Natural Health/ISB in Ankeny.This transition was a natural one, as a dancer's life deals with constant use of the body, injury, and recovery. Karina is a licensed massage therapist in the state of Iowa. Her practice is located at Full Circle Wellness Center in Clive-a chiropractic health center owned and operated by Dr. Robert Adams. Dr. Adams and Ms. Sturdevant work closely together in providing throrough and complete care for all patients and clients. Karina works on a variety of clientele-car injury recovery, sports specific cases, work injuries, and muscle conditions related to stress. One can expect a thorough evalutation process before a massage, in a professional health care environment, and self care recommendations after the massage. Karina loves her profession and will provide the best personal care possible for every client!