Lady Whistledown would not like this one bit, although the Duke might abide. John Oliver, who notoriously described Netflix’s Bridgerton as “lots of jizzing in blankets,” might also get a kick out of what awaited the show’s fans at an event that a Detroit-area organization advertised as the (Netflix-unaffiliated) “Detroit Bridgerton Ball” for a “Regency Era Dance” with this description:
Step into the enchanting world of the Regency era at the Detroit Bridgerton Themed Ball. Join us for an evening of sophistication, grace, and historical charm. Experience a night like no other filled with music, dance, and exquisite costumes.
What transpired, Dear Readers, was not as advertised. Local ABC affiliate Detroit 7 News must have gotten word of the event’s disastrous reception at historic social club Harmonie because reporters showed up “at the tail end,” where crews interviewed disgusted attendees, who couldn’t believe that there was “raw food” and “a stripper pole” instead of fine dining and Regency-era dancing. There was no Queen picking a “Diamond” for the courting season, and so on. The outlet quotes a sad Netflix fan:
“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. They were gonna give away all of these prizes and we went in and it was completely empty in there,” said Amanda Sue Mathis as she stood outside of the Harmonie Club. “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.”
This situation doesn’t sound quite as expensive and awful (or difficult to escape) as the Fyre Festival debacle on a remote island, or as surreal as the sorry Wonka-themed “Experience” in Glascow. Still, attendees reportedly invested hundreds of dollars on tickets to stare at their phones while sitting on the floor and wondering what happened. A full X/Twitter thread breaks down the madness, and the organizers of the event still haven’t explained why pole dancing was on the entertainment list. Maybe they are saving the context for a horror movie or Fyre Festival 3 (which will never happen).