Saying "Beetlejuice!" three times might summon the mischievous ghost, but singing, vaping, and recording the musical about him won't do anything but get you kicked out of the performance. That's what officials with Denver Arts & Venues are accusing GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert of doing during a Sunday evening performance of the touring Broadway show, resulting in her being booted from the city's Buell Theatre, per the Denver Post. According to an incident report, two patrons were asked to vacate the premises during the second act after complaints came in about them "causing a disturbance"; they were apparently given a warning during intermission.
"I told them that they need to leave the theater and if they do not, they will be trespassing," an usher says in the report. "The patrons said they would not leave. I told them I would [be] going to get Denver Police. They said go get them." Surveillance video released by Denver Art & Venues shows security talking with a woman who appears to be Boebert and a male companion during the performance, then, about a minute later, escorting them out of the performance room. The report adds that, once in the vestibule, the pair continued to resist leaving and said such things as "Do you know who I am?" and "I will be contacting the mayor."
The report notes that the pair eventually left once police arrived. Boebert wasn't named in the report, but her campaign office conceded she'd been escorted out of the theater. "I can confirm the stunning and salacious rumors: In her personal time, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert is indeed a supporter of the performing arts (gasp!) and, to the dismay of a select few, enthusiastically enjoyed a weekend performance of Beetlejuice," Boebert campaign manager Drew Sexton said in a statement. He acknowledged that Boebert had been taking photos without knowing she wasn't supposed to, though he denied she'd been vaping.
story continues below
On Tuesday, Boebert herself confirmed the incident. "It's true, I did thoroughly enjoy the AMAZING Beetlejuice at the Buell Theatre and I plead guilty to laughing and singing too loud!" she wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. She then encouraged others to go see the play and to "please let me know how it ends!" In a statement to CBS Colorado, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts said they were "committed to creating a safe, comfortable, and enjoyable experience for everyone attending any production. ... We were informed that two patrons were not adhering to the policies, which eventually led to them being escorted from the [theater]." It didn't identify the patrons for "privacy purposes." (More Lauren Boebert stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
