He’s been dancing to his own beat for years at a busy intersection in Sherwood Park. Now, the 21-year-old curbside performer has been told to park it by police.
If you’ve driven in Sherwood Park, the street corner at Baseline Road and Sherwood Drive probably looks a little empty. That’s because it’s missing its dancing man, who’s typically seen with his helmet and longboard.
The dancer is 21-year-old Caden Skelton.
He’s been stationed at the corner for a couple of years. Skelton took to dancing on the street after he suffered a brain injury while riding on an electric longboard without a helmet.
“I just started getting back on the board less than a month after I got out of the hospital, and just decided, you know what, I’m going to bust down a boogie on my board,” said Skelton.
Skelton chose that spot in Sherwood Park because of the volume of traffic that passes through that area each day.
“I was able to impact the kids that had a bad day at school. I could impact the bus drivers that they’re just like, hum drum day, got nothing better to do, ‘Oh look there’s a guy dancing right there, yeah,’” said Skelton.
But Skelton’s no longer moving his feet after receiving $1,500 worth of tickets from Strathcona County RCMP on Monday.
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“They gave me a stunting ticket. They told me if I dance again (I’m) going to be arrested or given another ticket. If I sing again I’m going to be arrested or given another ticket,” he said.
Strathcona County RCMP tell Global News they received multiple public complaints regarding dancing at a busy intersection.
“Our primary concern is and will remain public safety, both for the individual and for motorists and pedestrians using the roadway,” said Const. Cheri-Lee Smith with the Strathcona County RCMP.
“In this instance, enforcement became necessary only after repeated efforts to address the safety concerns through education and communication were unsuccessful. ”
Skelton says it feels targeted.
“They’re not giving tickets to anyone else doing what I’m doing or a different form of what I’m doing, but they’re only giving it to me,” he said.
“There was room for compromise. I was working with the superintendent and the chief of police on things, and we came to an agreement. I said, all right, I’ll work with you guys on this. Officers have decided to step over that.”
The 21-year-old also dances in front of Sherwood Park restaurant, Sunny Side Up, and they’re disappointed their dancing egg will be missing.
“They love him. People come in, they’re like, ‘We came in because of this guy, because he’s making us smile,’” said Sunny Side Up owner Monika Lavelle.
Although they may be a little biased, his family and friends will also miss him dancing on the corner.
“When he first started to dance on the corner, I probably was the same reaction as some people, like that’s a little strange. But you know what, after a while, I started seeing the posts, the positive posts and hearing stories of how he’s been really bringing joy to people, it just really warmed my heart,” said Debbie Banks, Skelton’s grandmother.
One of his friends, Arlen Dueck, was just a supporter of his dancing at first, and their friendship blossomed after seeing the impact he had on people each day.
“That’s so cool, he’s doing that, that makes my day, that makes my friends’ day, my family’s day. It brings joy to our life, it brings happiness, seeing someone expressing themselves in that way,” Dueck said.
Skelton hopes he can resolve this situation with the RCMP and get back to dancing.
“It’s almost telling me, ‘We don’t want you to be doing this, we want you to be normal,’ but being normal is no fun,” he said.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
