Recommended by Monica Cross

1950's housewife meets cosmic horror and all I can think is: The really horror here is this husband's attitude! Funny and timeless (like the elder evil in the basement) this play shines a flashlight on the invisible labor of "housework." While the monsters lurking in the basement might not be as surprising to you as they are to the husband in this story, his reaction will be! This play features Bethany Dickens Assaf's signature style and wit!

I listened to the wonderful radio version on Stories Found! It excellently showcased the comedy and horror of this play!

How sweet! How much joy and love and hope is in this monologue. Scott Sickle once again has got me in the feels. And with a reference to classic scifi at that!

This would be a wonderful audition monologue!

Bravo, Scott!

THIS GRASS KILLS PEOPLE is like "Rhinoceros" for the 21st century. It is such a clear commentary on willful ignorance, and yet it transcends the cultural moment for which it was written. This play has simple and effective staging, and would be a lot of fun for the actors involved. It is a classic Daniel Prillaman play: part absurdism, part horror. 100% not to be missed!

This is a Pandemic play that does not reference covid, lockdowns, or 2020. This play is about a couple who can't leave a restaurant until they eat all the bread in their unlimited bread order (Hell of a Deal!) but the isolation and sense of dread that accompany this play are so deeply rooted in the experiences of 2020 that we are able to process the those events through absurdism, comedy, and sex jokes. This play would be amazing onstage!

Bravo, Daniel!

This monologue recommends itself. Or rather explains why my recommendation is inadequate. If you have spent any time here on NPX, you will get a hoot out of this piece. Read it! Recommend it! Do an impromptu performance of it for your dog!

TWO ARTISTS TRYING TO PAY THEIR BILL is comedy gold! And if a picture's worth a thousand words, this 10-minute play is worth a thousand dollars. Lucy Wang takes a simple scenario (a restaurant increasing it's prices) to comic extremes. So much fun!

You can tell a lot about a person from their Taco Bell order. Colette Murphy creates two characters who define themselves and their life choices by what they order, and we see it play out in real time as they reveal more to each other than what they like to eat. TWO BEAN BURRITOS & AWKWARD SILENCES perfectly hits the millennial angst on the nose and leaves us to consider what Baja Blast could mean in our own lives.

Thank you, Colette! I toast my Dr. Pepper to you!

I had the opportunity to watch the digital recording of the World Premiere of ARTEMISIA made available by the Forward Theatre. I was familiar with Artemisia's Judith and the details of her life that are often associated with the painting. Lauren Gunderson's play opens up the life of Artemisia Gentileschi and reminds us that she is a complicated individual and so much more than the reductive narrative we hear about her. I was struck by how much I identified with Artemisia's struggles as a woman and an artist and trying to maintain authenticity in both of those aspects of self.

DO NOT MISS OUT ON THIS PLAY!

Emily McClain creates a dark comedy that is as charming as it bleak. I adore this fish family and their ill-fated owner. And everything from the scuba diver figuring to the floating fish make me smile. I want to produce this play! I want to stand in for the scuba diver figurine! I want to make costumes for each of the fish! This play excites me with all of its staging possibilities!

Read this play! Recommend this play! Produce this play!

FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS highlights the worst (debt collection) and best (debt forgiveness) of humanity. Philip Middleton Williams brings together two men from very different walks of life, and they bond over beautiful similarities. This is a charming play that would be a great fit for any 10-min play festival.