Recommended by Monica Cross

  • Monica Cross: Slaymaker

    Growing up in a small town trying to navigate geek culture as a woman, I feel so incredibly connected to Bethany Dickens Assaf's play! SLAYMAKER does not condemn geek culture as misogynistic but rather exposes how misogyny and abuse are excused within geek culture as "just part of the game." While geek culture has become more mainstream, the subset of geek culture that Bethany highlights (those in small economically depressed towns who use geek culture as an escape) is still underrepresented.

    Growing up in a small town trying to navigate geek culture as a woman, I feel so incredibly connected to Bethany Dickens Assaf's play! SLAYMAKER does not condemn geek culture as misogynistic but rather exposes how misogyny and abuse are excused within geek culture as "just part of the game." While geek culture has become more mainstream, the subset of geek culture that Bethany highlights (those in small economically depressed towns who use geek culture as an escape) is still underrepresented.

  • Monica Cross: Totality

    The urgency! TOTALITY is a brilliant short sci-fi love story that is infused with an overwhelming sense of urgency. Chase D. Fowler has given us a beautiful snap shot of a relationship that needs no backstory and leaves us with the longing of hope for a future. But in this moment we have two characters who just don't have enough time in the present. It would be a great scene for actors wanting to work on stakes or inclusion in any short play festival.

    The urgency! TOTALITY is a brilliant short sci-fi love story that is infused with an overwhelming sense of urgency. Chase D. Fowler has given us a beautiful snap shot of a relationship that needs no backstory and leaves us with the longing of hope for a future. But in this moment we have two characters who just don't have enough time in the present. It would be a great scene for actors wanting to work on stakes or inclusion in any short play festival.

  • Monica Cross: The Death of Juliet (10-minute LGBTQ monologue)

    THE DEATH OF JULIET is a stand alone monologue that can be part of a larger play (THE SECRET MUSE) which adds other characters and creates a larger world in which Ned is a part. I love THE DEATH OF JULIET as a stand alone monologue because it feels like a celebration of the unspoken history of queer performers. NED is created for an AMAB trans actor to share the experience of gender euphoria that can be found through acting (in particular playing Juliet and Cleopatra).

    THE DEATH OF JULIET is a stand alone monologue that can be part of a larger play (THE SECRET MUSE) which adds other characters and creates a larger world in which Ned is a part. I love THE DEATH OF JULIET as a stand alone monologue because it feels like a celebration of the unspoken history of queer performers. NED is created for an AMAB trans actor to share the experience of gender euphoria that can be found through acting (in particular playing Juliet and Cleopatra).

  • Monica Cross: The Secret Muse

    I had the honor of being the dramaturg on the staged reading of THE SECRET MUSE at Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival in 2024.

    Mark Evan Chimsky has given us a moment in history to imagine the queer experiences we don't have records of. Infused with so much historical detail that we do know, this monologue cycle feels very real and raw and immediate (even though the characters are speaking from the afterlife).

    The role of Ned is much needed part for AMAB trans actors.

    I had the honor of being the dramaturg on the staged reading of THE SECRET MUSE at Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival in 2024.

    Mark Evan Chimsky has given us a moment in history to imagine the queer experiences we don't have records of. Infused with so much historical detail that we do know, this monologue cycle feels very real and raw and immediate (even though the characters are speaking from the afterlife).

    The role of Ned is much needed part for AMAB trans actors.

  • Monica Cross: BIGFOOT

    What is more unbelievable string theory or bigfoot? Meghan Endres Brown gives us dark comedy about loneliness, family, and connection, then infuses it with quantum physics and cryptozoological conspiracy theories. These are dynamite characters with a shocking turn of events that takes the whole story another level entirely. I imagine production teams having a blast with this script. Are you looking for a tight 3-person play? Don't miss this gem!

    What is more unbelievable string theory or bigfoot? Meghan Endres Brown gives us dark comedy about loneliness, family, and connection, then infuses it with quantum physics and cryptozoological conspiracy theories. These are dynamite characters with a shocking turn of events that takes the whole story another level entirely. I imagine production teams having a blast with this script. Are you looking for a tight 3-person play? Don't miss this gem!

  • Monica Cross: The Remarkably Unremarkable Crucifixion of Emma Reynolds

    Daniel Prillaman is a master of making the utterly mundane creepy AF. THE REMARKABLY UNREMARKABLE CRUCIFIXION OF EMMA REYNOLDS is just that! Prillaman has perfectly captured the exasperated tone of a teenage girl who is impressed by nothing, and then given her a story that is both completely run of the mill and impossibly beyond belief. It's the little details that makes this monologue so spot on: Being late for school, annoyed the surprise assembly, the weird reassurances from the magician!

    Daniel Prillaman is a master of making the utterly mundane creepy AF. THE REMARKABLY UNREMARKABLE CRUCIFIXION OF EMMA REYNOLDS is just that! Prillaman has perfectly captured the exasperated tone of a teenage girl who is impressed by nothing, and then given her a story that is both completely run of the mill and impossibly beyond belief. It's the little details that makes this monologue so spot on: Being late for school, annoyed the surprise assembly, the weird reassurances from the magician!

  • Monica Cross: Gravediggers

    What a treat! Emily C. A. Snyder has given us a Hamlet joke to DIE FOR! In GRAVEDIGGERS, we get to hear Hamlet from the Gravediggers point of view. And you might be surprised what you learn. I absolutely guffawed at the punchline of this scene! Every Shakespeare nerd should read this!

    What a treat! Emily C. A. Snyder has given us a Hamlet joke to DIE FOR! In GRAVEDIGGERS, we get to hear Hamlet from the Gravediggers point of view. And you might be surprised what you learn. I absolutely guffawed at the punchline of this scene! Every Shakespeare nerd should read this!

  • Monica Cross: Treason at the Globe

    Looking for a Hard Boiled Detective story in the world of Elizabethan England? Francis RTM Boyle delivers! The characters in TREASON AT THE GLOBE are worthy of their Shakespearean influences and there are so many lovely moments in this script that would be fun for Shakespeare lovers to put up on its feet.

    Looking for a Hard Boiled Detective story in the world of Elizabethan England? Francis RTM Boyle delivers! The characters in TREASON AT THE GLOBE are worthy of their Shakespearean influences and there are so many lovely moments in this script that would be fun for Shakespeare lovers to put up on its feet.

  • Monica Cross: Born With Teeth

    I am a huge fan of Liz Duffy Adams, and this script is so deserving of all of the attention it is getting right now. Even reading it on the page the scenes feel electric. Both Shakespeare and Marlowe seem like such fun characters to play. The twists and turns of this script are dynamite! I hope to see it staged soon.

    I am a huge fan of Liz Duffy Adams, and this script is so deserving of all of the attention it is getting right now. Even reading it on the page the scenes feel electric. Both Shakespeare and Marlowe seem like such fun characters to play. The twists and turns of this script are dynamite! I hope to see it staged soon.

  • Monica Cross: Mother's Little Helper

    I saw an early reading of MOTHER'S LITTLE HELPER and I cackled, make that died from laughing. I am dead. There is a lot of hard truths in this play and the delightfully over the top presetnation of a demonically possessed kitchen (and roast chicken! "The bones! the bones! from last night's chicken!") is the perfect vehicle for delving into the topics this play discusses.

    I know this play would be a BLAST for any cast, crew, designers, and directors to work on.

    I saw an early reading of MOTHER'S LITTLE HELPER and I cackled, make that died from laughing. I am dead. There is a lot of hard truths in this play and the delightfully over the top presetnation of a demonically possessed kitchen (and roast chicken! "The bones! the bones! from last night's chicken!") is the perfect vehicle for delving into the topics this play discusses.

    I know this play would be a BLAST for any cast, crew, designers, and directors to work on.