The Last Self Tape

This November, Ailun (Ellen) Zhou’s debut solo show The Last Self Tape hits The Cockpit, with a powerful message to all actors and performers. This thrilling new solo show is an in-depth look at what it means to be an actor in our chronically online, modern-day world, and how creatives can feel on the hunt for a connection in an industry that can sometimes feel entirely disconnected if not directly through Wi-Fi. 

Set in London the home of hopeful actors, The Last Self Tape dismantles the post-covid shifts in the industry that have called for in-person auditions to be scrapped, causing a feeling of disconnect between actors and seemingly anonymous audition panels. Beneath this surface, it tells the story of Chloe, a woman who once dreamed of becoming a scientist but whose life was reshaped by family upheaval, isolation, and a long journey through art, ambition, and survival. 

As a ArtsEd & LAMDA graduate, Ailun Zhou draws on her own experiences as a performer to deliver a raw and compelling exploration of the unravelling of confidence, self-belief, and purpose. Through Chloe’s story, the play examines how an artist navigates the pressures and hierarchies of training, expectation, and power and the difficult, sometimes controversial choices she makes in her search for authenticity and connection.

Co-written and directed by Robert Price and produced by Jie (Jessie) Xu, The Last Self Tape is a reality check for anyone working in the arts. Isolated in a flat with only a script, a tripod, and the pressure to deliver the perfect take, an actor strives for authenticity, bold choices, and the subtlety that casting directors so often demand. As Chloe records, she begins to retrace her life, frame by frame, peeling back layers of illusion and fear in search of the courage to continue. 

This now-routine process for many performers is examined with striking honesty in The Last Self Tape, which ventures beyond the surface to confront a deeper, often unspoken fear.

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