'Tis prom season.
Or 'tis -- as some celebrities see it -- prom-crashing season.
A number of stars have recently dropped in to senior dances, as a surprise and, most importantly, a selfie-opp.
Last weekend, pop sensation The Chainsmokers stopped at the senior prom of Huntley High School near Chicago.
The duo of Andrew Taggart and Alex Pall were performing a concert at the nearby Allstate Arena. A student had contacted the band about making an appearance; management contacted the principal, who kept it quiet. (Principal Scott Rowe was quoted as saying: "It was probably the toughest secret I've ever kept, because I knew the kids were going to go crazy for it.") The Chainsmokers treated the teens to a 10-minute private show and, of course, tweeted a photo.
"Crashed this prom just now," said the caption. "It was across the street from our arena show, so why not." And they clearly enjoyed themselves. Said another caption: "Just crashed Huntley High schools prom! That was awesome. [Heart emoji] have a good rest of prom" with no apostrophe in schools and no final period, just like that. (Perhaps they could have stuck around for some punctuation lessons?)
And plenty of other stars have made similar appearances. Recently Kylie Jenner crashed a Sacramento prom, acting as a teen's date when she learned via social media his girlfriend broke up with him. According to Elle.com, other stars who have popped in to regular folks' proms include Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and John Mayer.
Though not in the same league at all, I, too, crashed a prom once upon a time. Though not everyone found it amusing (more on this in a second).
Summary: My friend Donna and I -- 10 years after our own proms -- were staying at a San Diego hotel. As we were going to our rooms after dinner -- and apparently strong drinks -- we heard the music pumping in a ballroom. We, in a spontaneous moment, decided to join the teens in their tuxedos and taffeta, and began dancing with wild white-girl abandon. This was before phones had video cameras. Thank goodness.
It wasn't long before a teacher or security or both realized the two casually dressed older gals didn't belong there and approached us. Donna texted me her recollection of what happened next:
"Them: 'What are you doing?'"
"You: 'We're at the prom!' And you just kept on dancing."
Not for long. We were quickly escorted out. And that was that. I wrote a column at the time about how fun it was. Completely inappropriate and totally immature, but fun.
A senior class sponsor at an Arkansas high school didn't find it funny, writing a letter to the editor: "I am appalled that she thinks crashing someone's private party is humorous and fun. And to think she calls herself a professional. In a time of school violence and classrooms shootings, it's people like Christman who make school events security risks. ... I think Christman owes everyone involved an apology, not to mention [that] her constant use of sarcasm, to many readers, is disgusting. Perhaps the Democrat-Gazette was desperate for a writer when she was hired. I think her job description needs to be re-evaluated."
All these many years later, I'm grateful to still be here. And I certainly see some of her points.
I doubt this educator is still reading me. But in the event she is, let me now express for the record that I'm sorry ... that I'm really not sorry! I say that not with sarcasm, but with sincerity.
That utterly stupid and ultimately harmless moment of my life is a silly memory I still cherish.
To borrow a Chainsmokers line: "We ain't ever getting older."
"Don't Let Me Down," email:
Spin Cycle is a smirk at pop culture. You can hear Jennifer on Little Rock's KURB-FM, B98.5 (B98.com), from 5:30 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday.
Style on 05/07/2017