Beyond the Gates: Leslie Destroys Articulettes’ History – Anita Devastated?!

Hey, Beyond the Gates fans. We have Dana ‘Leslie’ Thomas (Trisha Mann-Grant) at a fork in the road. One way could lead to redemption and the other to rejection and ruin. And it all starts with the request Anita Dupree (Tamara Tunie) made for Leslie to give them permission to use Barbara Mitchell’s voice in these new recording sessions.

And things are going to spiral from there. In fact, it already started. Let’s talk about how Leslie’s foolishness could ruin the The Articulettes legacy unless a miracle happens and it somehow turns out well.

Beyond the Gates: Leslie’s Tragic Backstory

If you recall, Leslie didn’t know the identity of her biological mother for her whole entire life. Peaches Evans (Arle Michel) raised Leslie after her friend Barbara Mitchell, the founding member of the The Articulettes, left Leslie with Peaches when she was an infant and then she took her own life. Leslie was stunned when Peaches showed up in town. And this was after Eva Thomas Richardson (Ambyr Michelle) told Leslie to stop ignoring the letters from the trust lawyer.

But Leslie thought they were scam letters because she didn’t know anyone with money to leave her. And Peaches showed up to finally share this secret she’d kept hidden her whole life because Barbara made Peaches promise to act as Leslie’s mother and never reveal she was really her biological mother.

Anita Drowning in Guilt on BTG

Meanwhile, money had been piling up for years because of Anita. She was so guilt-ridden that Barbara killed herself after she was pushed out of the The Articulettes because the producer thought she was too straight. So, Anita refused and didn’t push back on the producer and let it happen to Barbara because Anita was prioritizing her own career, never having any idea that Barbara was going to take her own life.

So, Anita was haunted. She set up the trust for Barbara’s heirs and over time it grew into a veritable fortune and she was horrified to find out Leslie was Barbara’s only heir and she got the entire fortune after destroying Nicole Dupree Richardson (Daphnee Duplaix)’s marriage of a lifetime. So, she got money but Leslie never got to know her mother. And Leslie grew up, like so many of that generation, as an The Articulettes superfan with no idea her biological mother was the driving force behind the formation of the famous girl group that Anita went on to be the lead singer and star of.

Beyond the Gates: Leslie’s Deal with The Articulates

And now Tracy, Sharon Winger (Bonita Brisker), and Anita are supposed to be getting back into the studio to recut versions of all their songs and adding in archival tapes of Barbara’s voice to make the The Articulettes group whole again retroactively. Problem is, as her sole heir, Leslie is the one who controls the permission over using Barbara’s voice. So, Leslie demanded some concessions that Anita didn’t like, but Sharon pushed Anita to set the feelings aside and just make the deal.

Leslie wants to sit in the booth while they record. That was the very first thing. And she wants a producer credit on the new The Articulettes album, plus a share of the profit. But I doubt what Anita agreed to is going to be the end of it. Leslie could make things much more difficult actually during these recording sessions. Anita may give Leslie an inch and she takes five yards instead.

Leslie Replaces Anita on BTG?

Big question is whether she will wind up ruining these recording sessions and honestly ruining the The Articulettes legacy. Right now Anita can’t do the concert because her voice isn’t back. She’s hopeful it’ll recover before the studio sessions with Tracy and Sharon. But if it doesn’t, we could see Leslie pushing to take her place.

We know she loves to be the center of attention. Also, like her mom, Barbara, we know that Leslie can actually sing, and she may jump at an opportunity to get onto the album. Or worse yet, Leslie might create an opportunity to get onto the album. She may do something really sneaky and manipulative.

Red Flags on Beyond the Gates

Actress Trisha Mann-Grant, who plays Leslie, is a singer in real life and she sang on Beyond the Gates not too long ago. She serenaded Marcel Malone (Darryl W. Handy). And I feel like having Leslie sing was a red flag that we’re going to see more of her vocal talents on BTG. And we have seen Leslie humble lately. Like when she was trying to make things right with Marcel, she blew him off about the whole boat thing, but then Leslie softened her approach to her grumpy cop boyfriend Marcel.

But the question is, can Leslie also be humble about this The Articulettes opportunity? Because realistically, she should just be thrilled to be in the same room with these legends that were her mom’s best friends and to watch the The Articulettes record. But I can’t imagine Leslie just settling for watching Tracy, Sharon, and Anita sing. So Leslie may find a way to work her way into it.

BTG: Leslie’s Rotton Move

Worst case is she does something awful trying to wiggle her way in. Like Leslie erases Barbara’s tapes. So they need to find another way to have their original founder’s memory and legacy honored with this project. And it could be that Leslie’s voice sounds a lot like her mom’s enough to where they reluctantly agree that she can sing with them. Anita, Tracy, and Sharon may be hesitant to allow this unless they were in a bind. And of course, it would be horrifying if Leslie ruined what might be the only copies of her mom’s early recordings.

At the same time, I wouldn’t put it past her. We’ve seen she’s willing to use Eva, use Peaches, use anybody else to make Leslie’s schemes happen. So, it could also be something benign like a technical issue that makes Barbara’s recordings unusual, and Leslie may humbly ask for a chance to audition for them, and maybe she wows them.

Beyond the Gates: Leslie Pushes Anita Out

Another way for Leslie to worm her way in is if Anita’s voice doesn’t come back on the timeline they need. Devon Winters (Bryton James) may have a deadline for the project and if Anita’s voice isn’t recovering fast enough, they may be left in a tight spot. And again, Leslie could offer to audition. She may suggest she can sing alongside her mom’s voice on the album. You know, pop stars’ children often do tributes like this, like when Natalie Cole did that amazing version of Unforgettable.

And it was a posthumous duet after her dad Nat King Cole’s death. I’ll never forget listening to that. But even if none of these things happened, I fully expect Leslie to abuse this opportunity when she should just be enjoying watching her mom’s best friends make music. So, she could do what Anita expects and Leslie can make trouble or she can do something right for a change.

Beyond the Gates: Leslie Out for Revenge

So, since Sharon got Anita to agree to the producer credit, we could see something less intrusive like Leslie’s just bragging about it all over the place, doing interviews about being Barbara’s daughter and trying to blow up her role in the project and make herself seem more important. This is a big opportunity that could change Leslie’s life and help her work through some of her issues around never knowing her mom, you know, or she could abuse it and it just isn’t a positive thing.

Leslie was really enjoying the stories about her mom, Barbara, that she was hearing from Anita and Sharon and Tracy, but at the same time, Leslie may want some payback because Barbara was kicked out and Anita didn’t stand up for her and then basically took her place. So, Leslie might try to get more involved with the project specifically to damage Anita. I wouldn’t put it past her.

Eva Warns Leslie on BTG

I know Eva is going to be thrilled for her mom, but we’ll also see this is probably a situation Leslie will abuse. Eva may even warn her mom, don’t do it. But Leslie doesn’t listen and she tends to make a fool of herself and make others hate her. So that could happen again. Anita’s already on edge about having to involve Leslie.

But Sharon and Tracy may give Leslie the benefit of the doubt in honor of Barbara. Question is, will Leslie rise to the occasion and be an important part of honoring Barbara’s legacy, or will she make a mockery of it all by trying to glory hound, hog the limelight, and make it all about Leslie herself rather than her mom? I know which outcome I expect.