Recommended by Andrew Martineau

I love father-son plays that explore a range of emotion, especially when they explore extreme awkwardness due to societal norms that have essentially created unnecessary, unhealthy tension and repression. Don Baker moves from beat to beat in this short play with amazing skill in writing well-crafted dialogue and character motivation. I love Jim's war stories that lead us to see how he can have empathy for his son's boyfriend's desperation, despite his lack of initial understanding of the relationship. Beautiful writing!

Wonderfully whimsical and lighthearted, with a serious message of acceptance and living your best life, even if it means adjusting to it in an unconventional way. I loved the canned tuna joke and the puns! I want to see this now in full visual display!

Mr. Iverson is the sort of fun, who-cares-what-the-administration-might-think guidance counselor that every anxious teenager could benefit from. I love that he pulls out Drew Barrymore's book for sage advice and tells Alex that his parents just need to lay off for awhile. I look forward to reading more in the series!

This play is so enthralling, and I love the evolution of the trio as they grow up together. The dialogue is so natural, and conflict slowly builds to a crescendo. Stephen Redmon-Byrum expertly adjusts the dialogue as the characters age, and the confusing stages of adolescence are on full display. Touching and heartfelt with a surprise ending. Excelling writing!

This beautiful play about closure for family in a father’s final moments reveals how complicated our familial relationships can be, especially if we are estranged from a parent and have to deal with unexpected loss. This play deals more with siblings than parent-child bonding, even though we don’t know much about the brother/sister relationship, which is what makes the play so fascinating to me. How has the father’s lack of affection impacted the siblings’ relationship? Maybe this a new start for them. This is a gift for actors.

This play is a revelation. It does what every great ten-minute play does—it builds in intensity to an emotionally fulfilling ending with something profoundly important to say, with a sense of urgency and purpose. I wondered why Lilia kept talking to Jaden through the door at first, and then the motivations for both characters became clear crystal clear with the simple slip of an envelope. I can see why this has been such a winner!

“It’s okay, Baby. Papa’s gonna get you some food.” This may be one of the greatest character transformation lines I have had the pleasure of reading. It is spoken during an elementary school interview, which is so zany it had me laughing out loud. I can only imagine how much fun this would be to watch onstage, especially with real props! I loved it!

This was a lot of fun, and I kept thinking Phyllis was going to walk in on them, uninvited. The dialogue is so consistent with the actual show, at least before it takes a turn, that I could envision it perfectly. It was nice to see Mary and Rhoda take their relationship to the next level. The mention of Chuckles made me laugh, and it was nice to know he was still alive!

I first read this play last summer as part of the Kennedy Center Playwriting Initiative, and it was quite a pleasure to read it again. Bruce Karp has expertly highlighted the confusion a mother of a certain generation has when her adult child is transitioning with the added dimension of dementia. It's remarkable in the way it reveals the emotional wedge between the two, and the sadness is palpable. The moment of connection at the end with the dance is beautifully touching.

As someone who has worked in higher education for many years, I could relate to Cern's play and laughed hard while also thinking back on irritation at the reality of this satire. I love how Mel feels compelled to repeat her detailed story, over and over, despite the fact that the narrative seems to be of no concern to anyone who should be helpful. A super-sized short comedy that nails the absurdity of its subject!