Oh dear, someone’s forgotten how to add budgets on Microsoft Excel again. There is a new type of event, or should we say experience, punctuating the cultural calendar – a themed event based on a popular TV or film franchise that oversells and under-delivers. In February, it was the farcical ‘Willy Wonka experience’ in Glasgow. Now, it’s the ‘Bridgerton-themed ball’ in Detroit.
The latter has ‘left fans fuming’, as per BBC News, after promising attendees a glamorous, Regency era ballroom party akin to those on the hit Netflix show. ‘Join us for an evening of sophistication, grace, and historical charm,’ read the invite. ‘Experience a night like no other filled with music, dance and exquisite costumes.’
Bridgerton buffs rushed to the shops to buy Austen inspired gowns and feathered fans, booking in with their local hairdressers to have their hair adorned with ringlets. Expecting to arrive, perhaps by horse and carriage, to a spectacular, grand hall where they might find a ruffle-collared bachelor on the other side of the dance floor, the reality was rather sobering.
Instead, they were met by a large, sparsely decorated, carpeted room with a single violin player hired to fill the space with music. The entertainment was, of course, a pole dancer in a red bikini. Lifted right out of a Julia Quinn novel! According to attendees, they were served ‘raw’ curry from tin trays and cold toast with sliced cheese, all of which reportedly ran out after an hour. Viral videos from the event show guests sat on the floor, the trains of their frocks folded disappointingly across their laps, while scrolling on their phones in silence.
Better still, they paid between $100 (£75) and $1000 (£750) for the privilege. The local company that organised the ‘event’, Uncle and Me LLC, has released a statement saying it takes ‘full responsibility and accountability’ for its shortcomings, but did not mention a refund.
It didn’t take long for the event to draw comparisons with the now infamous Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow. This similarly disastrous event billed itself as ‘the place where chocolate dreams become reality’ and the website featured vibrant images of a Wonka factory fantasy land. It promised fans an ‘Enchanted Garden’, a ‘Twilight Tunnel’ and an ‘Imagination Lab’. In reality, it looked like a groom with a sweet tooth had run out of money for his wedding reception on an episode of Don’t Tell the Bride.
The venue was less ‘enchanted’ and more ‘bleak’, with a few plastic statues of mushrooms dotted around an empty warehouse, a semi-deflated bouncy castle and a fold away table featuring 11 or 12 half-filled cups of squash. It also included a character called ‘The Unknown’, who hid behind a mirror dressed in a Halloween costume, who does not feature in the book or films.
In this instance, the police were called, and the event was cancelled a matter of hours after it started. The organisers, House of Illuminati, were accused of scamming parents and children and were forced to issue full refunds. Needless to say, House of Illuminati said it was ‘an event gone wrong’ and that they would not be holding any more for the foreseeable future.
Two of the Oompa Loompa’s hired to work at the event described the experience as ‘life changing’. After an iconic picture of Oompa Loompa Kirsty Paterson looking unimpressed in a dark green wig went viral she said, ‘I’m just a normal girl from Glasgow and I woke up one day and my life’s completely changed. It’s been overwhelming but I’m loving it, I’m just embracing it – this is completely me.’
In defence of both the Willy Wonka experience and the Bridgerton-themed ball, they did promise to be memorable. All the guests who forked out money, dressed up and travelled in might not have enjoyed them, but the rest of the world certainly has.
Nikki Peach is news and entertainment writer at Grazia UK, working across pop culture, TV and current affairs. She has also written for the i, i-D and the New Statesman Media Group and covers all things TV for Grazia (treating high and lowbrow shows with equal respect).