Review: The Constant is Change in "The Last Audition" and "A STAN IS BORN!"

The Last Audition

Written and performed by Paul Shearman

Directed by David St John

Presented by Banjo & Bongo Productions at Chain Theatre

312 West 36 Street, Floor 3 & 4, Manhattan, NYC

April 1-17, 2026


A STAN IS BORN!

Written and performed by Alexis Sakellaris

Presented at Chain Theatre

312 West 36 Street, Floor 3 & 4 Manhattan, NYC

April 14-19, 2026

Paul Shearman. Photo by Eric Moore.
It may be an old question, but in an age of struggling arts organizations and the dismantling of funding institutions, it’s one that still merits some reflection: why do we need theater? What does it do for society that cannot be achieved in other ways? Although wildly different, The Last Audition and A STAN IS BORN!, presented as part of the 2026 NYC Fringe Festival, answer these questions with stunning clarity: theater helps us to make sense of the most fundamental aspects of human existence in community with others.

Written and performed by Paul Shearman, The Last Audition is a solo play about an aging Shakespearean actor preparing to audition for the role of King Lear. Throughout his warmups for an audition that, as it turns out, was canceled three weeks ago, he confronts his failing mind and body, grappling with the potential loss of independence that looms over him as his daughter, appearing in the play via phone call, encourages him to visit an assisted living facility with her. Woven into the actor’s stories about his experiences in the theater and vocal and physical warmups is the text of well-known Shakespearean soliloquies—“To be or not to be” from Hamlet, “Now is the winter of our discontent” from Richard III, “Out, out brief candle” from Macbeth, and of course many moments from King Lear, perhaps most powerfully Lear on the heath. In this new context, these familiar lines seem fresh, resonating with the play’s poignant and moving exploration into memory and aging.
Alexis Sakellaris
Written and performed by Alexis Sakellaris, A STAN IS BORN! is a queer coming of age story about how Sakellaris coped with a childhood move from New York City to rural Germany through his obsession with pop divas. Alternating the performance of some of these divas’ most recognizable tunes and his own original songs, Sakellaris tells the story of his family’s relocation while recounting how his obsession with pop divas, sparked by his singing of Celine Dion in his German music class, unexpectedly serves to help ground him in his new home—in large part because it ultimately leads to the recognition that he has to “stan” himself if he is going to stan anybody else. This light and campy production full of catchy tunes belies its message about the importance of self-acceptance and the ability to find community in the most unexpected of places.

They explore two very different moments in life, but both The Last Audition and A STAN IS BORN! present touching portrayals of coming to terms with life-altering changes. They remind us that this is what theater can do—entertain, yes, but also help us to think about the experiences we all share.

-Stephanie Pietros

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