Dearest gentle reader, prepare to clutch your pearls.
What had been hyped as a dreamy, high-society “Bridgerton Ball” in Detroit on Sunday night quickly turned into a Regency-era-themed disaster, leaving hundreds of Netflix fans furious and disillusioned.
With tickets reportedly ranging from $150 to $1,000 for exclusive packages, the event promised a Bridgerton-themed ball with prizes and a chance to win $2,000 for the best dressed “Diamond of the Season.” What attendees got instead, according to ticket holders, was a bare-bones room, fluorescent lighting and drinks at room temperature. The event was compared to the disappointing Willy Wonka-themed event from earlier this year.
“It was chaos,” Alison Germain, 36, who attended the event with her mother, told Yahoo Entertainment. “There were no chairs and no floating finger foods, or a table with refreshments. Attendees were sitting on the floor off to the side, including me, in our beautiful gowns we spent money on.”
Backdrops and decor on party city/dollar general level. They didn’t even pay the photographer and the pictures were a hassle to get if you didn’t have airdrop 😭 pic.twitter.com/iAneWhmofz
— Rachel Eaton @ Realta (@rayleearts) September 24, 2024
The event’s organizer, a company called Uncle & Me, had sold 1,500 tickets throughout the summer before the ball was rescheduled from Aug. 25 to Sept. 22 due to the venue dropping out at the last minute, according to ABC7 Detroit. It was eventually held at Detroit’s historic Harmonie Club.
Videos and photos flooding social media this week showed guests standing around awkwardly, looking more confused than entertained. Some even resorted to sitting on the floor eating Kit Kats sold by vendors — an upgrade from what was described as undercooked chicken.
“There was a complete lack of organization throughout the night,” Alexis Dallas told Yahoo Entertainment. “People were extremely angry, even leaving in the first 30 minutes after arriving.”
Dallas said that she and her date had paid $170 each for an upgraded ticket, around $500 for their outfits and another $90 for professional photos they never received.
Since the event on Sunday, attendees have filed numerous police reports, according to a Facebook group managed by the victims. One of the group’s administrators, Ashlyn Cook, said roughly 150-200 people have signed on for a potential class-action lawsuit against the event’s organizer.
Yahoo Entertainment contacted Uncle & Me as well as the event’s lead organizer, Chelsea Beard, but did not immediately hear back. Beard did, however, acknowledge the complaints in a post shared to Instagram on Tuesday.
“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,” she wrote. “Nonetheless, we take full responsibility for these shortcomings.” The company’s website has also been disabled.
Netflix also didn’t respond when reached for comment, though it’s reportedly unaffiliated with the event, which is unrelated to similar events the streamer hosts across the country.
Despite the shortcomings, and the cost, Germain said she and the other attendees were “determined to have a fun time no matter what,” though she claimed that Beard made a clean exit.
Rakisha Johnson, who was credited as the lead decorator for the event, is facing a wave of backlash she claims is undeserved.
Johnson said her contributions were limited to a few centerpieces, stands and linens. Larger elements, like the floral backdrop for photos and the room where “the Queen” sat, had nothing to do with her company, Designs by Rakisha.
Yet Johnson claims she’s been bombarded by over 11,000 hateful comments on social media since Sunday.
“It all fell under my name — but it wasn’t mine,” the decorator told Yahoo Entertainment. “I’m too good of a person to have my name dragged like this.”
Johnson explained that she was hired by Beard’s cousin, who she had worked with previously. When she arrived at the venue, she said it became clear that things were spiraling out of control. For starters, there was no one at the entrance checking tickets, and with guests growing increasingly frustrated over the lack of food and drinks, Johnson said she became the face of the event’s failures.
At one point, she sent her nephew out to buy cases of water in a desperate attempt to calm the crowd, though, she said, “That was not my job.” She and others later served as the go-between for the absent organizer and the caterer, handing out plates, putting on gloves and serving food.
Another bizarre twist at the event was the last-minute addition of an exotic dancer, who was hired just three hours before showtime.
“They accepted my rates, and it was a very smooth hiring process,” said dancer C. “Tink” Young, who told Yahoo Entertainment she was paid $800 for three five-minute pole dancing sets.
“I was only there for an hour, doing my job,” she explained. “I had no idea the event was a disaster for the guests. I found out the next morning, but personally, I was treated very well by the company.”
Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for all of the attendees.
Juanita Morton said that she spent a total of $800 on tickets, outfits, hair and makeup — only to find out that the event organizers had completely dropped the ball.
“Everything was terrible,” she told Yahoo Entertainment. “There was no effort. No chairs past the first floor. Backdrops that looked like they came from Dollar Tree. Nothing was as promised.”
“There was a promise of ballroom dancing lessons,” said Germain. “But those dance lessons, instead, consisted of the Cupid Shuffle.”
Germain and Dallas said they’ve made repeated attempts to contact the organizers, but have been met with silence. They’ve since filed police reports, while Morton joined the potential class-action lawsuit.
How to spot potential scams
These debacles are becoming all too familiar. According to a Federal Trade Commission report released in February, American consumers reported losing more than $10 billion to fraud in 2023, marking a 14% increase from the previous year.
Kay Dean, a former federal criminal investigator who heads Fake Review Watch, an organization that holds companies accountable for online scams, said a significant part of the problem lies in images used to promote events, which paints a misleading picture of what attendees should expect.
“Websites with alluring photos and content can be created quickly, and phony testimonials add a touch of genuineness,” she told Yahoo Entertainment. Furthermore, “people should never rely on online reviews, be it for assessing a business’s level of service, a product’s quality or the legitimacy and value of an event.”
For Dallas, the warning signs were already there.
“Before the event, there was a lack of communication,” she explained. “I had emailed the organizers twice for clarifications and never received anything back. I just assumed it was an oversight on their behalf.”
Unfortunately for many ticket holders, their experience now serves as a cautionary tale.
“I hope this gets a resolution,” said Dallas. “I really do.”
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