Recommended by Monica Cross

10:42-10:49 sucked me in from the beginning and plunged me right back into the feeling of growing in a small town in the 90s and the toxic and abusive situations that often pervaded that environment. Bethany Dickens Assaf creates characters that are relatable and uniquely complicated. Audiences will be rooting for these characters, and on the edge of their seat wanting to see how it turns out.

This play needs to be staged!

Steven G. Martin is a master of packing big emotions into little packages, and 8-year-old Teddy's fear of death is a great example. This play packs a punch and says so much with just a few words. What is left unsaid speaks volumes. BRAVO, Steve!

Hal's transition to King Henry V is rife with tragic moments (I always think of "I know thee not, old man."). Jillian Blevins hits us with one more in THE PRINCE'S SHADOW. This goodbye moment between Hal and Poins has gorgeous language, and leaves us with such longing! It works beautifully as a stand alone play and is absolutely devastating in larger Shakespearean context.

WHY THE BANSHEE WAILS is a snapshot in time, seen from several points of view. Adam Richter creates a compelling moment and then turns it over and over, and it is exactly those shifts in perspective that draw us in. This play has history, mythology, psychology, and practicality all wrapped up in one.

Definitely check out this eerie play and find out WHY THE BANSHEE WAILS!

Amongst all of the anxiety about AI generated text, Adam Richter explores the possibilities of where this technology might go. The characters in MACHINE LEARNING have a delightful and insightful conversation about the future of AI written text. And honestly, I think it's a pretty accurate prediction that Adam Richter gives these characters. This is a very timely 10-minute play, and I am interested in seeing how prophetic it turns out to be.

Move over Animal Farm, Emily McClain is serving THE JUDAS GOAT. Based on an actual slaughter house practice, this play is chilling while still being disturbingly funny. I would love to see this play staged. If it could be in an outdoor performance space, all the better!

Looking for a dark comedy for your 10-minute play festival? Put this at the top of your list!

What do you do when you are the last of your species? Meet up with other animals that are the last of their species. This is fun and touching and calls attention to the extinctions that march ever onward. Jillian creates compelling characters with enormous personalities, I would love to costume them! THE EIGHTEENTH QUINQUENNIAL ENDLINGS PICNIC is a great show with a timely message.

Our pets are dependent upon us humans for so much, and if they could talk, what would they tell us? Colette Murphy gives us insight into exactly that. In WHEN WE TALKED, we get a glimpse at the distinct psychology of Dogs, Cats, Fish, and Humans. This Masterful 10-minute play would be a delight to stage.

BRAVA!

LOVE'S HEAVY BURDEN is a fun and delightful sequel to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It incorporates many of my favorite Elizabethan tropes: women disguised as page boys, surly musicians, young men who are too in love to be able to continue living, the list goes on. Swirling plots tie up loose ends to Shakespeare's play, and a host of new characters round out the antics, while thematically linking back to the source material.

I was fortunate to catch a virtual reading of the play put on by Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company.

Bravo!

LAYERS, OR "THE CASSEROLE PLAY" is a play with many layers, and many twists and turns. It is alternatingly hysterical, poignant, ridiculous, and lovely. This is a play that engages with it's source material in such a fun and vivid way, and encourages audiences to engage with it as well. It's the sort of play that is instantly quotable and will have audiences recalling moments for a long time afterwards. Scott Sickles has gotten to the bottom of the Casserole dish and dish and I love it!

BRAVO! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!