Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Lauren Boebert kicked out of Beetlejuice for vaping, singing and ‘causing a disturbance’, says report

Republican lawmaker escorted out after multiple complaints about her behaviour, states incident report

Graeme Massie
Los Angeles
Wednesday 13 September 2023 08:03 EDT
Comments
Moment Lauren Boebert removed from Denver theatre production of Beetlejuice

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Lauren Boebert was escorted out of a Colorado theatre’s performance of Beetlejuice for allegedly vaping, singing, taking pictures and “causing a disturbance”.

The right-wing congresswoman and a companion were asked to leave Denver’s Buell Theatre during the performance of the touring Broadway show on Sunday night, reported The Denver Post.

The Republican lawmaker, who was not named in an incident report, was warned about her behaviour during an intermission after three complaints were made, and she was eventually asked to leave altogether.

Her campaign office confirmed the incident to the newspaper while disagreeing with the details of the lawmaker’s behaviour.

Drew Sexton, her campaign manager, told The Post that the congresswoman denied vaping but did use her phone to take pictures of the performance.

“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,’ ” Mr Sexton said in a statement.

He also noted that the newspaper’s own review of the show had described it as “zany,” “outrageous,” and a ‘lusty riot.”

He added that the politician urged people to see the show, which she lauded for a “fantastic cast, tremendous visuals and plenty of loud laughs”, but “with a gentle reminder to leave their phones outside of the venue.”

The Independent has reached out to Ms Boebert’s office for further comment.

Lauren Boebert removed from Beetlejuice show
Lauren Boebert removed from Beetlejuice show (9News)
Lauren Boebert seen being escorted out of theatre
Lauren Boebert seen being escorted out of theatre (9News)

Security footage from the theatre shows Ms Boebert and her companion being escorted from their seats.

A separate camera then picks up the pair returning to the lobby. Ms Boebert flings her arm in the air at one point before walking away.

The incident report, obtained by The Post, states that after their warning, officials received another complaint around five minutes into the second act.

“They told me they would not leave. I told them that they need to leave the theater and if they do not, they will be trespassing. The patrons said they would not leave. I told them I would (be) going to get Denver Police. They said go get them,” an usher is quoted as saying in the report.

The report states that the two theatregoers were taken down to the vestibule, where they refused to leave, telling staff “stuff like ‘do you know who I am,’ ‘I am on the board’ (and) ‘I will be contacting the mayor.’ ”

Police arrived and stayed in the theatre until Ms Boebert and her companion left, according to the report.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in