Dancing the day away

By Brian McNeill

Published: May 11, 2008

As M.C. Hammer’s “You Can’t Touch This” blasted from nearby speakers, Charlottesville mother JoAnn Robinson smiled down upon her 7-year-old son Gregory.

“He’s going to break dance just like Mommy did when she went to her prom,” Robinson said.

“No, I’m not!” Gregory protested.

Before Hammer’s tune concluded, Gregory — sporting a black bow tie — was spinning on the floor and attempting somersaults.

The Robinsons were among 180 mothers and sons who attended Charlottesville’s second annual Mother’s Day prom at the Key Recreation Center off the Downtown Mall.

“It’s about bringing the community together. It’s about exercise. Dancing,” explained Will Bassett, director of marketing for the city’s parks and recreation department. “Also, you know, it’s Mother’s Day weekend.”

At the formal dance, it was a familiar scene. Couples posed for prom portraits in a corner. A few wallflowers sat in folding chairs off the dance floor.

Except, in this case, a few of the boys in the photos made funny faces. And the wallflowers sipped off juice boxes and munched on animal crackers, Rice Krispie Treats and frosted cupcakes.

Theresa Clark, a nurse and Charlottesville resident, attended the dance with her 9-year-old son Shawn. The pair had never before danced together.

“I just wanted to get out and do something fun with him,” she said.

For Tamika Harris of Waynesboro, the mother-and-son prom was a chance to take a trip down memory lane with her two little boys in tow.

“I just haven’t been to a prom since 1998,” Harris said.

Harris’ cousin, Charlottesville resident Ebony Harris, also a mother of two, added, “It’s something nice for the boys.”

In front of the Key center, the two cousins snapped a photo of their four little boys, all wearing tuxedos.

“They jammin’ in there, ya’ll! C’mon,” urged Cristal Harris, the four boys’ grandmother and great aunt.

Shortly thereafter on the dance floor, the DJ spun the first slow song of the evening, Van Morrison’s “Have I Told You Lately.” Around 50 couples — one partner invariably taller than the other — swayed to the music.

A few boys successfully dipped their mothers.

Next up, the DJ played the “Cha-Cha Slide.” One little boy’s white sneakers flashed red LED lights. Another drank apple juice as he danced, half distracted.

For Christine Jones and her 11-year-old son Shaheed, the dance was a nice way to spend the night before Mother’s Day.

“It sounded like we’d have a good time going out and enjoying an evening with each other,” she said.