Lady Luck is A Whore (What happens in Vegas Stays in this show) is a sharply written one-woman show by NYC based Leanne Linsky. Linsky flexes her Second City and Upright Citizens Brigade trained writing muscles in this 55-minute autobiographical sketch-comedy about life after divorce. The vignette scenes are crisp and brief, always closing with a masterful punchline. Linsky’s narrative is well constructed and peppered with the smart wit of a woman anyone would want to take home to meet Mom. The show ends a bit abruptly, but at CapFringe, it is a refreshing change to be left wanting more.
As performer, Linsky doesn’t fare quite as well. She is at her best when acting scenes as the colorful characters of her life, most especially her soft-spoken mother and gregarious father. “Stand-up comedy” style monologues delivered over the heads of the audience fail to make a connection, however. I have reviewed two other solo shows in larger venues where the performers managed to engage their audiences with eye contact. Lady Luck is made awkward by the effort taken to avoid the audience at the tiny Caos on F venue. I suspect this was a directorial choice by Trish Vignola because Linsky directly addresses the audience in a scene where she teaches a community college class as her arrogant ex-husband Steve. Linsky has the comedic chops to join the ranks of Rudner and Fey, but the choice to avoid eye contact with her audience registers as fear.
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