EXCLUSIVE: How Jeff Bezos' Prescence has 'Devastated' One of the World's Most Popular Theater Shows
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos' visit to a London theater show has made waves.
April 16 2025, Published 9:48 a.m. ET
An acclaimed immersive theater show has "lost all credibility" after it hosted the Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancée.
Performers said they felt "let down" after the creators of the acclaimed theater show You Me Bum Bum Train provoked acrimony among its army of unpaid volunteers after staging a performance for Bezos, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Performers at the edgy production were thrust in front of the world’s second-richest person and his partner Lauren Sánchez with just seconds’ notice.
Performers in the immersive production were "horrified" after being thrust in front of the world’s second-richest person and his partner Lauren Sánchez with just seconds’ notice.
The pop-up London show, which has received rave reviews and whose £132 tickets sell out in minutes, relies on thousands of volunteers to bring its surreal worlds to life. Yet disquiet has grown among a cohort of volunteers about some of the famous people able to access the guest list by buying "patron" tickets or booking private nights.
Audience members are called "passengers."
Concerns were outlined in a letter to the show’s creators by three volunteers addressing the presence of 'potentially contentious individuals.'
The concerns were recently outlined in a letter to the show’s creators, Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd, by three volunteers addressing the presence of "potentially contentious individuals."
It began circulating in the theater world last week, adding to the show’s mystique, which is maintained by an insistence on guests and staff signing non-disclosure agreements.
Tensions among some volunteers flared when Bezos and his partner attended the production on March 28 along with an entourage including some of the billionaire’s family. A volunteer said that both they and colleagues were left "incredibly upset" after feeling obliged to perform for Bezos.
As well as unease at the unpaid work for one of the wealthiest living people, they expressed outrage at "being put in a room with someone who is working to support the destabilization of US democracy."
A volunteer said they were given so little time to consider performing for Bezos that they felt there was little choice but to take part.
Unlike traditional theater settings, the production involves performers and theater-goers, of which only one takes part at once and 77 over the course of a night, being placed in often intimate settings.
The volunteer said that they were given so little time to consider performing for Bezos that they felt there was little choice but to take part.
They added that two volunteers were "visibly unhappy" at Bezos’s presence, although others were nonplussed, treating him as they would any other celebrity guest.
A source said: "The show has lost all credibility now if the rich can just muscle in and book private shows. This is not what we are about."
Two volunteers were 'visibly unhappy at Bezos’ presence.
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Four days after the performance, Bond and Lloyd emailed volunteers who performed that evening to address the production’s "approach to keeping the experience open to everyone, even when it features high-profile figures."
The message said: "Bum Bum Train is built on empathy. We’ve seen how experiencing the show can affect meaningful change, even in the most unlikely passengers."
Others in attendance who have raised eyebrows include Joshua Kushner, the American billionaire venture capitalist whose brother Jared is President Trump’s son-in-law.
The show's reliance on volunteers has long been a source of controversy, with the UK actors’ union Equity opposed to the practice.
Its creators, who first staged the show in 2004, have only recently started taking a wage from the company, alongside about 20 production staff.
They have also been open about how selling higher-priced tickets to private buyers offsets the cost of public tickets, which they estimate would cost $8,000 each without the use of volunteers.
