Recommended by Andrew Martineau

A B &B is a great place to set a play because there is an inherent awkwardness to it, at least for anyone not extroverted enough to find some level of enjoyment from it. There is plenty of awkwardness built into Ruyle’s play, with the playwright protagonist oblivious to the possibility that others might not fully appreciate his lecture on writing characters. There are wonderful insights here that I fully appreciate, such as his very astute observation that people are not really boring. “They just seem boring,” says George. This play is not boring. It’s quite intriguing!

This play had me laughing out loud. I love all of the poultry puns and the absurd yet poignant moments as these birds start to learn of their fate by the treacherous humans. I know this was written as a radio play and can work perfectly as one, but I would love to see actors standing at attention in turkey costumes. Wonderfully wacky!

CURTAIN CALL is the kind of comedy that actors love to play because, well… it’s about them and they know how to play actors, of course. I love the fickle emotions and fragile egos displayed in this opening night backstage setting. The playwright/actor seems to be deluding himself with his optimism and it’s fun to watch him in this conflict with his fellow thespians! Very enjoyable piece!

The acerbic, often brutally honest expressions of “love/hate” in this play show a couple that obviously feels a sense of exhilaration from their put downs, or so it seems. There is a cleverness to their verbal “hostility” and the game-like competition is often quite funny. Each insult gets nastier by the minute, and I would imagine that the two actors would enjoy playing this while working hard to finish before the timer goes off. Quite a wild and entertaining ride!

Sometimes a play can set you right back in a particular time and place just through a conversation of lost dreams that the world was not ready to make a reality. The MTV culture of the early 21st century is brought to vivid life by St. Croix in which he shows us the sad reality of an extremely homophobic music scene. I loved the line about wokeness and how the world wasn’t “out of bed” yet. Great dialogue and surprise reveal at the end that says so much about the toxicity of keeping secrets.

This play is quite unique and entertaining, and it shows how different a restroom experience may be between the sexes in multiple ways. The realms of masculine competitiveness, envy and political ideology are explored here to their full comic potential. GENTLEMEN covers a lot of ground in ten minutes, including our responsibility to not spread germs. Nicely done!

INSIDE is a fascinating dramatic look at Multiple Personality Disorder. The device of multiple actors inhabiting the person and the other voices works beautifully here, and the story of abuse is slowly revealed both to us and to the psychiatrist unraveling the mystery of the fateful, horrific event that led to the hospitalization. A smart, emotionally-charged glimpse at mental illness told in a truly sympathetic and realistic way. Excellent!

If we can’t laugh at siblings paying tribute to their fathers at his funeral and failing miserably, then what can we laugh at? This is irreverent humor at its hysterical best! I love the fact that they are on a tight schedule, and also the fact that a Picasso lies in the balance. I can only imagine the laughs from audience members who can relate to the absurdism of this spectacle. Great comic writing!

I absolutely love this play. Paul Smith creates a simple, seemingly ordinary conversation between strangers on a bench and shows us how a chance encounter can be life changing. The small gesture of giving away a classic book that has been forgotten and revisited is just one touching moment and is a stark reminder of how quickly life can pass us by. A FAVOUR also reminds us that we never know what the person sitting next to us is going through, so we should always strive to be kind. Beautiful in its simplicity and emotional resonance!

This short play about a woman trying to raise some donations for the needy gives me the right amount of holiday spirit, and it’s still spring! As Mary confronts opportunism and cynicism on her corner, her goofy demeanor is infectious enough to make everything turn out right. A fun, clever Christmas play!