The McHugh School of Irish Dance has been going viral this past week after Kylie Kelce, the wife of former Philadelphia Eagles NFL quarterback Jason Kelce, joined them for a step during a St. Patrick’s Day performance on Saturday, March 16.
Kylie surprised revelers at Media’s Towne House in Media, Pennsylvania ahead of St. Patrick’s Day when she joined the pros for a treble reel step during their performance.
To the surprise of many, Kylie wasn’t half bad!
Posted by Media's Towne House on Saturday, March 16, 2024
As it happens, Kylie - whose maiden name is McDevitt - actually has some proper Irish dance training. She explained in a TikTok on Thursday afternoon as the St. Patrick's Day video continued to circulate: “I Irish danced from when I was about four years old until I was probably in seventh for the McDade School of Irish dance."
She added: “My sister did it longer and was much better.”
Kylie joked that she hadn't really Irish danced since she was a child "with the exception of, occasionally, when impaired in college."
(She also noted how Jason was sampling the Guinness during the shindig.)
Humble Kylie claims she embarrassed herself during the impromptu St. Patrick's Day step-about, but we beg to differ!
@kyliekelce The third edition of places Kylie has no business being! If you want timely posts, you’ve come to the wrong place. ?
♬ Celtic Flashy Celtic Music - Masucu
Tara McHugh Boyce, TCRG at the McHugh School of Irish Dance, shared the full story with IrishCentral on Friday: “The mom of one of my dancers, Maggie Riley (age 9), works alongside a mutual friend of Jason and Kylie. They were hoping to come out to see some Irish dancers that night.
“We hoped to try to get Kylie up to dance with us so I sent Maggie over to ask her and much to our surprise, she agreed.”
Tara said that she had heard that Kylie had Irish danced as a child, but admitted she hadn’t realized that she was “actually an accomplished Irish dancer” who had trained under Sheila Sweeney TCRG at the McDade-Cara School, also in Pennsylvania.
(Sharing Kylie's TikTok on Friday, the McDade-Cara School simply said "it never leaves you.")
Tara continued: “When we arrived at the performance and realized they were there, I pulled the dancers aside to let them know that the Kelces were there, and they were screaming and jumping up and down. All of them were so excited.
"All of the dancers knew who Jason was but I’m not sure all of them knew Kylie.”
After a bit of convincing, Kylie joined in for a treble reel alongside McHugh dancers Maggie Riley and 16-year-old Patrick Berry, while assistant teachers Maura and Aislinn Boyce, Kimber Shallock, and Victoria Hegarty also got in on the fun.
Kylie Kelce (second from right) with dancers and staff from the McHugh School of Irish Dance. (Courtesy Tara McHugh Boyce, TCRG)
Tara said that after the now-viral Irish dance performance, both Jason and Kylie stayed to take pictures with all of the dancers and their families, and even accompanied the dancers to another part of the restaurant for their second performance.
Jason Kelce and Kylie Kelce with dancers from the McHugh School of Irish Dance. (Courtesy Tara McHugh Boyce, TCRG)
"They were just genuine, down to earth and really good people," Tara said, adding that Kylie "made such an impression on all of the children that they all left there not only as a Jason Kelce fan, but also as a Kylie Kelce fan!"
"They gave our dancers a night they will never forget!"
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