“Bridgerton” ball gone wrong in Detroit: Inside the not-so-immersive experience that fans are calling a 'scam'

The Netflix-inspired event is drawing comparisons to such fiascos as the Glasgow Willy Wonka experience, Tumblr's DashCon, and Fyre Festival.

Bridgerton fans in Detroit are fuming after an expensive immersive event failed to make their Regency-era dreams come true.

On Sunday, attendees of an unauthorized Bridgerton-themed event took to social media with a myriad of complaints about the experience that touted itself as a chance for fans to  “step into the enchanting world” of the hit Netflix series for “an evening of sophistication, grace and historical charm.”

Tickets for the "Detroit Bridgerton-Themed Experience" — which ranged from $150 to $1000 depending on the package purchased — came with the promise of the full ball experience, including “a night of dancing, live entertainment, exquisite refreshments, and enchanting surprises” as well as “a chance to win $2,000 cash” for being named the Diamond of the Season aka the best dressed attendee.

However, those who showed up dressed to the nines in their Bridgerton best were greeted by a barebones event that did not deliver on said promises: disgruntled X and TikTok users said there was no cash prize, no alcohol, and not even enough chairs for people to sit. As for the entertainment, there was a single violin player and an exotic dancer, according to the attendees.

"The way that it was described was this was going to be a Bridgerton evening. We were gonna have classical music, good dinner. There was gonna be a play and they were gonna pick Diamond of the season,” one attendee said in a report by local ABC affiliate WXYZ-TV. “They were going to give away all of these prizes. And we went in, and it’s completely empty in there. There is nothing going on. They have a pole in the middle of the dance floor. A stripper pole in the middle of the dance floor.”

Added another, “It was complete chaos. They never even scanned our tickets. We paid to eat dinner, and there were random people all throughout the venue.”

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“My family and I just left the Detroit Bridgerton Ball,” wrote one attendee on Reddit, alongside photos from the event “It was absolutely HORRENDOUS. There was nowhere to sit. Although the venue was nice, the decor was sparse and extremely tacky. It wasn’t even Bridgerton themed! We spent $400 on tickets for a complete b*s experience!”

One commenter wrote that they were “insulted” that their tickets were never checked after spending $150 apiece and added, “Highlight of the night was after that we go to the 3rd floor to do one last scan looking for anything redeeming and there's a dj. Having people do the cha cha slide and walk it out like it's a birthday party.”

The night of the ball was also not the first issue encountered by ticket holders: the event was originally scheduled to take place on Sunday, Aug. 25., but the night before, guests were informed via email that the venue had fallen through and the ball would be rescheduled.

“All tickets will be honored if you had purchased a ticket prior to date change,” the event website noted in the aftermath. “Your [sic] welcome to sell your ticket as well if you cannot be in attendance.”

The event was organized by a business called Uncle N Me LLC, whose founders are uncle and niece team Jeremy Scott and Chelsea Beard. They have since disabled comments on their social media posts and removed the company’s website. On Tuesday, Beard shared a statement about the outraged response to her personal Instagram page.

“Dearest Gentle Readers,” she began. “We understand that not everyone had the experience they anticipated at our event on Sunday night at The Harmonie Club, and for that, we sincerely apologize. Our goal was to create a magical evening, but we recognize that organizational challenges and unforeseen changes, including a last-minute venue and date change, impacted the experience for some guests. Unfortunately, some nonrefundable deposits from the original bookings resulted in losses on our end, which added to the challenges. Nonetheless, we take full responsibility for these shortcomings.”

She continued, “Please know that we are working diligently to address all concerns and will be reaching out with further details shortly. Your feedback, both positive and constructive, is greatly appreciated. You can expect an email with next steps.”

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The statement also extended a “special thanks” to those who attended, noting “you all looked breathtaking,” and promising that a recap video and photos of the event would follow.

Beard concluded, “Your understanding and loyalty mean the world to us, and we are dedicated to making this right.”

Reps for Uncle N Me did not immediately respond to Entertainment Weekly’s request for comment, nor did Beard reply to a request for comment via her Instagram page.

The event venue, the Harmonie Club, shared its own statement in response to attendees commenting on unrelated posts on their Instagram page.

“We would like to clarify: The historic Harmonie Club is a new venue and event center located in Paradise Park in downtown Detroit. The Harmonie Club can be rented by all for private or public events. We are in no way affiliated with the promoters and/or organizations that rent our venue for events such as the Bridgerton Ball,” read the statement. “While we offer support for all events i.e., providing a proper back-of-house facilities and management team; The planning, programming, and execution of the actual events are handled by the venue lessees, promoters, and their teams.”

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The Detroit Bridgerton Ball is drawing comparisons to the infamous and similarly unofficial Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow that made headlines in March and in turn drew comparisons to such disastrous events as Fyre Festival and Tumblr’s infamous DashCon.

"I think we should absolutely get refunds and honestly I want to see this company never doing business again," an attendee of the Detroit event told WXYZ.

Representatives for Bridgerton, which is not affiliated with the event, did not immediately respond to EW’s request for comment.

Netflix notably hosts its own offical Bridgerton-themed immersive party experience called “The Queen’s Ball,” which offers superfans a chance to dress up and step into the show’s world in select cities, Detroit not included.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.