Lauren Boebert, the US congresswoman, has issued an apology after being kicked out of a performance of the musical Beetlejuice in Denver for inappropriate behavior, an experience she has called “difficult and humbling”.

Boebert, a Republican representative for Colorado, and a male guest accompanying her were ejected from the musical on 10 September for vaping, recording video and disturbing other patrons during the Sunday performance. Video also showed them eagerly groping each other while in their seats.

Lauren Boebert
Lauren Boebert: congresswoman kicked out of musical for ‘causing disturbance’
Read more
Boebert and her campaign manager initially denied that she was vaping and said she was removed for being too loud. But surveillance video obtained by the Denver television station 9News shows the congresswoman openly vaping during the performance.

Two sources also confirmed to 9News that Boebert was vaping, a prohibited action that ushers attempted to address with her several times.

A pregnant woman reportedly confronted Boebert and asked the congresswoman to stop vaping, the New York Post reported. But Boebert refused.

“These people in front of us were outrageous,” the unnamed woman said to the Post. “I’ve never seen anyone act like that before.”

The CCTV video also shows Boebert’s guest fondling her breasts after they had taken their seats. Boebert is also seen petting her guest’s crotch in the venue.

CCTV appears to show Lauren Boebert vaping during Beetlejuice musical – video
01:09
CCTV appears to show Lauren Boebert vaping during Beetlejuice musical – video

Boebert and her date were later removed by security in the second act of the musical as their disruptive behavior continued.

The CCTV footage shows a blurred-out gesture that Boebert flashed at theater security as she was escorted out. Business Insider reported that the gesture appeared to be a middle finger.

According to a report of the confrontation from theater security, Boebert and her guest became argumentative with officials. “Do you know who I am?” the congresswoman allegedly asked, according to the theater security report.

Boebert apologized for her behavior in a Friday evening statement.

“The past few days have been difficult and humbling, and I’m truly sorry for the unwanted attention my Sunday evening in Denver has brought to the community,” Boebert, as reported by the Colorado Sun.

Boebert added that her “public and difficult divorce” has created a “challenging personal time for me and my entire family”.

skip past newsletter promotion
Sign up to First Thing

Free daily newsletter
Our US morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it matters


Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
after newsletter promotion
“I’ve tried to handle it with strength and grace as best I can, but I simply fell short of my values on Sunday,” Boebert said.


In May, Boebert filed for divorce from her husband, Jayson, after a long marriage.

Boebert’s disturbance at the musical was first confirmed on Tuesday, though the congresswoman initially attempted to suggest she had been removed from the theater for enjoying the performance too much.

On X, formerly known as Twitter, Boebert wrote that she “[pleaded] guilty to laughing and singing too loud!”

The Colorado congresswoman is in her second term after narrowly being re-elected in 2022.

She is one of the most far-right representatives in Congress, widely known for bigoted statements she has made against LGBTQ+ people, Muslims and other marginalized communities.

A report from the Advocate, the LGBTQ+ news outlet, noted that the man who accompanied her to Beetlejuice was a Democrat named Quinn Gallagher who is the proprietor of a bar that has hosted LGBTQ+ events and drag performances, which have often been targets of the political right.

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I was hoping you would consider taking the step of supporting the Guardian’s journalism.

From Elon Musk to Rupert Murdoch, a small number of billionaire owners have a powerful hold on so much of the information that reaches the public about what’s happening in the world. The Guardian is different. We have no billionaire owner or shareholders to consider. Our journalism is produced to serve the public interest – not profit motives.

And we avoid the trap that befalls much US media – the tendency, born of a desire to please all sides, to engage in false equivalence in the name of neutrality. While fairness guides everything we do, we know there is a right and a wrong position in the fight against racism and for reproductive justice. When we report on issues like the climate crisis, we’re not afraid to name who is responsible. And as a global news organization, we’re able to provide a fresh, outsider perspective on US politics – one so often missing from the insular American media bubble.

Around the world, readers can access the Guardian’s paywall-free journalism because of our unique reader-supported model. That’s because of people like you. Our readers keep us independent, beholden to no outside influence and accessible to everyone – whether they can afford to pay for news, or not.

If you can, please consider supporting us just once from $1, or better yet, support us every month with a little more. Thank you.