Recommended by Daniel Prillaman

An arresting satire of a married couple (both HOA members) appointing themselves judge, jury, and perhaps more while on their quest to ensure the neighborhood adheres to proper code and image. Fun roles for actors here that eloquently and absurdly show why the Sartre quote is so iconic.

I need everyone to understand that Lisa is consistently the funniest playwright working today. She is a master of comedic escalation, taking characters that feel so real and relatable through ever-increasing gauntlets of unexpected hilarity. Here, a chance meeting between two strangers with a mutual connection becomes a guffaw and espionage filled meet cute that I have never shipped harder in my life. Ruthlessly entertaining.

I laughed aloud at this so hard I scared my cat. Can't really give it higher accolades than that.

A humorous and challenging short play. Men navigate a separate world, not having to constantly and exhaustively account for potential danger in public. But in our contemporary society, men (not enough) are perhaps more aware of this fact than ever. So when Charlie approaches Chris, is he genuine? Or does he have ulterior motives? Can connection happen either way? Great characters and dialogue that leave us with much to ruminate on.

What to say about such a magnificent play? I could talk about the thought-provoking, docudramatic exploration of truth vs. memory. I could speak to the absurdly human desire to do good for others. I could muse on how we define our lives by the smallest moments of decision and action. But what I really should say is that there is a Groundhog Dream Ballet. Like I said. Magnificent.

Any horror lover has watched that one movie at too young an age that traumatized us and gave us irrational, life-long fears. Just saying that this is one is also totally legitimate. I know a guy who knows a guy whose cousin had this happen.

"'Tis better to have loved and lost, then never to have loved at all." I'd add because even in, as Floyd-Priskorn so eloquently puts it, "the emptiness in between," that love remains with us because it was born in the first place. Anyway, my cat was on my lap while I watched a virtual performance of this and I didn't cry, I WEEPED LOVE FROM MY EYES. Beautiful encapsulation of grieving and remembrance.

It's arguably the most powerful emotion, the fear that drives people to stare at anybody "different." Whether it's a lizard brain response to the unwanted reminder of the facade of the civilized world, or one based in something crueler, it's something we all must work to overcome. We are all humans, and we all deserve to be treated like them. Powerful monologue, and fitting the adage: "If somebody has a problem with you for nothing reasonable, that often says more about them than you."

One of my favorite things about myth is its malleability. There’s countless ways to tell these stories that change over lifetimes and millennia, but their hearts never do. Xanthopoulou brings us into the Labyrinth via the POV of its iconic “monster,” unpacking what the word truly means, and what monsters truly look like. Lovely monologue that shoulders a poignant gravitas.

It is parthenogenesis? Or Bird Jesus? Either way, we do know for certain that Braverman’s short is an absolutely delightful two-hander, with opportunities aplomb for two actors to go all out. Funny, thoughtful, and in possession of a most impressive wingspan.