←The Depot for New Play Readings

Ben Scranton’s superb “The Last Battalion of Children” is set in the nightly dream of a former Nazi doctor. In this realm where anything may occur, visions of victims and family confront the doctor with his crimes. Lyrical monologues combined with the suspense of a courtroom drama raise emotions to a pitch. The fabulous dialog is never marred by a weak line, and the imagery is pinpoint. A powerful exploration of guilt that engages the intellect and the heart in equal measure. Highly recommended.

Amy and Jeff are having trouble trying to have a baby, and their annoying neighbor Mrs. Teitelbaum knows just how to help. With that simple set up, Arianna Rose delivers an unforgettable play about pregnancy and parenthood, and Wiccan and science in New York’s Upper West Side. With rapid-fire dialog, hilarious physical comedy, and a lot of heart, "The Ripple Effect" walks a fine line between fantasy and reality. The result is utterly charming. A sure crowd-pleaser. Very highly recommended.

Steve Gold’s “Barren Landscape” portrays with accuracy and heart the loneliness of Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers. In two scenes, we see a mother and daughter contend with the mother’s disease. The story is common, and Gold hits the right tragic notes. What makes his play stand out, though, is its humanity. With tight dialog, he depicts the way Alzheimer’s reduces social filters, and the result is dialog that's funny. The play is all the more powerful for it. Strongly recommended.

Jack Rushton’s “Far from Nirvana” manages a three-act structure in ten minutes. A middle-aged couple seeks to revive their passion with a drug that promises to take them to Nirvana. Riveting and unpredictable, the trip takes the couple somewhere neither they nor the audience expect. Easily staged with minimal props, the play also can be adapted easily for radio broadcast. Highly recommended.

Andy Levine’s “Close Your Eyes” dramatizes the agonizing decision an average suburban family must make when their middle child, a boy with developmental disabilities, becomes too difficult for them to care for. Set in the late 1960s, when the only option available was institutionalization, Levine portrays the stakes for every member of the family in all its complexity—the fear, anger, and grief they feel. “Close Your Eyes” is a terrific play that is both poignant and tragic. Highly recommended.

In “Morir Soñando,” Manuel López Torres combines the story of an undocumented striver, Rafi, with the supernatural legend of El Cuco, a malevolent figure who haunts children’s dreams. While Rafi pursues love and law school, El Cuco shadows him, a dramatic externalization of a system that prevents immigrants like Rafi from ever achieving the American Dream. A heartbreaking play that walks the fine line between comedy and tragedy. Highly recommended.

Germaine Shames bases “The Joy of Theatre” on a case of Russian theater artists arrested for a rewriting of a fairy tale. Shames masterfully transforms the story, which for some people may resonate with events in the U.S. Action moves quickly, from celebration to incarceration under inhumane conditions. Never didactic and with rich language, humor, and stark stage settings, the play mocks the absurdity of authoritarians while positing the power of creative minds to resist. Strongly recommended.

In “Didn’t See That Coming,” a beautifully written compendium of eight ten-minute plays, Mark Harvey Levine examines the tensions and ambivalences of relationships with originality and economy. Often beginning humorously, the plays shift delicately to address love, death, and the metaphysical. The brilliant dialog is very visual and like a transcription of real conversations. Organized in an emotionally satisfying narrative arc, the plays can be produced with simple sets. A sure crowd pleaser.

In her brilliant farce, “Dance for a Manatee,” Mara Dresner presents ineptitude for laughs. Fundraisers meet politicians meet dancing detectives, a cast of characters who live in a singular reality both believable and absurd. With great comic bits, rapid-fire repartee, and a plot that twists and turns like a roller coaster, the play delights from beginning to end. A gem of a comedy for actors of multiple ages and races. Audiences will buzz about this play for days. Highest recommendation.

In “One-Pot Wonders,” Jennifer Persechino explores the bittersweet choices aging couples inevitably confront—loneliness, illness, and mortality. The play presents the difficult Cathleen and patient Ed as their marriage fractures and Cathleen navigates the tricky territory of not wanting to ask her daughter for support but needing it. With memorable stage action and dialog as quick as ping pong, the mood shifts from comedy to tragedy masterfully. Plum roles for older actors. Highly recommended.