Lesley Lightfoot has worked in theatres all over the United Kingdom, in productions both large and small. That depth of experience is evident in this one-woman show. In this performance, she recounts many of the experiences that she had working in those other theatres, playing a character who is a version of herself. She also plays all sorts of characters that she encountered while working in theatres, as well as characters which she herself (or, the character she’s playing on stage) had to play while at those theatres.
An interesting look at what it feels like to make it into theatres, but not quite up on stage.
The conceit of the show is charmingly ironic. In Thanks But No Thanks, Lesley Lightfoot plays ‘Lesley Lightfoot’, a woman who is perpetually an understudy – but of course Leslie is actually the star of this show. And, as the star of the show, she shines. Throughout the course of this performance, she sings, she dances, and she plays a number of different characters, proving herself to be a mature actress with an admirable range. She is funny at times, often bitter, and always incredibly relatable. In this show, we get exactly what a one-person show is supposed to deliver: a window into another person’s world.
Though the ending is low-kay, and might disappoint some, Thanks But No Thanks is an interesting look at what it feels like to make it into theatres, but not quite up on stage. Lightfoot does an excellent job conveying what it feels like to be perpetually sidelined – to ‘make it’, but never make it all the way.
