Recommended by Andrew Martineau

This short play is a very funny fable about how we treat animals and take them in to meet our expectations for some inexplicable reason. Who doesn’t love a sassy cat character, especially one who doesn’t feel the need to break into song and dance? This would be a fun piece for a fast-paced comedy short festival. Zany and entertaining!

Our memories are constructed in our minds, and when certain details are told to us in different ways through other often unreliable lenses, we must painstakingly put it all back together as honestly as possible. In the play Ana says, “I know what it’s like to get so caught up narrating your life that you forget that the people you’re with are actually people.” Karuc doesn’t give easy answers to confronting trauma, but her dramatic structure is effectively used to peel back emotional layers and make all parties people with flaws, ones not always excusable. Brilliant!

There is nothing that can compare to visual storytelling, particularly in the the form of a straightforward, honest monologue (either fictional or true) when the purpose is to share a lived experience of horror and shock. Patton expertly conveys the painful imagery of a horrific tragedy told by a firefighter who is experiencing a flashback for the first time. I cannot think of a better way to discuss PTSD than through the artful narrative Patton brings to vivid life. Simply beautiful!

I love plays that are completely unpredictable, and this play caught me off-guard because it is bold and daring and incredibly funny. A great comedy can poke fun at its protagonist and make us root for them at the same time. I can imagine that Jim has done his distressed caller some emotional good, so McBurnette-Andronicos wraps it up nicely and finds a killer punchline. Hysterical!

There is nothing I love more than a zany moon landing comedy…oh wait. I had never read one before this. Even more reason to love it— it is so original and funny! I would love to see this live. I felt a little sorry for Joe, I must admit, even though he lied to his fiancée. Was she really just trying to get rid of him? I love the ending, too. Wonderfully absurd!

I love a good vaudevillian short play in the style of Abbott and Costello or even Mr. Bean. TRAMP STORY moves at a quick pace and is very witty. I loved the requests the tramp makes from the menu, and the prayer at the end is hysterical. This play would make a great addition to an evening of absurdist comedy shorts. Nicely done, Raymond!

The theatrical, non-linear structure of this beautiful, dreamlike play gives us a glimpse into the inner workings of two pivotal characters’ minds: young Anna from Sweden, attempting to live the American dream by making quick money at the expense of her own health, and Hella, who is dealing with her own loss as she helps Anna deal with hers. DeVita aptly ties in references to literary characters, Ariel and Humpty Dumpty, to show us how fragile we are (young women in particular), when we succumb to society’s false expectations of happiness. DeVita brilliantly involves us directly with treats. First-rate!

Fathers and sons often have tenuous, emotionally complicated relationships in our culture, and the poignant sadness of this play lies in how this father and son have always had a strong emotional bond, strengthened by the tragic circumstances of the father having to raise his son alone for most of the boy’s upbringing, and yet the son has been forgotten. This play deals with far more than the sad mental deterioration brought on by dementia. It shows us how the mind can remember toxic relationships and trauma from long ago, and disturbingly forget the good memories. Beautifully written!

As a parent who was always a little bit creeped out inside a Chuck E. Cheese, I was truly mesmerized by the cultish nightmare of Bailey Jordan Garcia’s compelling allegory, shockingly played out in ten minutes. Just the idea of spending a time-out in the ticket blaster is terrifying enough, but the image of Chuck E.’s smiling mouse face shining down while awful sounds are left to the imagination was bone chilling. Amazing play!

Many parents these days face societal expectations involving gender and toys, and even very “woke” parents carefully consider the effects one toy might on their child and on how the child will be treated. Weibezahl examines this issue with a light, humorous touch. Race, class and gender are sensitive topics, but this play touches on each one in a few short, very entertaining minutes of dramatic tension. Well done!