Recommended by Daniel Prillaman

McClain’s visuals here are a pitch-perfect delight, accompanied by a moment I’m confident any audience would actually experience in slow motion. Even more brilliant in this short comedy is the genuine plot development that changes the game of the play without being over the top or underhanded, resulting in a delicious commentary on the ways we need others to perceive us. Some fabulous wordplay at work here, as well.

We can all go home. We’re done. That’s it. Scott Sickles wins playwriting. We had a good run, had a lot of laughs, made a lot of cool stage pictures, but no one’s gonna top this, right?

I kid for the bit. Sorta. My favorite kind of plays are unapologetically absurd and committed to their worlds. They give us something we haven’t seen or ever considered before. Without spoiling anything...there is definitely a moment or two in here you have never considered before. And you will never forget them. Hell of a play, Mr. Sickles.

A gift of a play that yet again demonstrates Malone’s immense talent for full, layered characterization. So often do plays geared towards younger audiences talk down and preach to them, but “Kangaroo Boy” recognizes the intelligence of its demographic, simply presenting a real scenario of real kids and the toxicity of bullying. Watching Jordan and Kangaroo Boy forge a connection and discover each other is exciting and hope-inducing, and is 100% worth your time. Brilliantly done.

It’s rare I encounter a play I desperately long to hear, but McShane’s sci-fi historical hybrid delivers (thankfully on a level much more intimate and heartfelt than Barnum’s). The dual storylines compliment and expound on one another throughout, resulting in a beautiful exploration of achieving one’s purpose and place in the world, the struggle to determine it, and why we pursue it. The Machine is an astoundingly breathtaking character that grounds the entire script in wonder and allure, and I yearn for the day an audience gets to respond to it with the fervor it deserves.

A tender and deftly paced play that covers colossal ground across languages and cultures, across words spoken and unspoken, across actions explainable and those we can never quite find the words for. Villanueva’s world-building of a completely plausible road for America is stellar, and plunges us straight into the meaty ethical questions and conflict between Sebastian and Elena. The storytelling here sucks you in, resulting a beautiful rumination not only on the choices we make (or don't) for family, but whether we deserve to make them.

A picturesque, quiet epic that would be enthralling to see live. Marchant’s play takes the Prometheus myth and molds it into a deceptively layered family drama that burns and roars beneath the seams of its surface. The setting is glorious (and would be so fun for designers to realize) creating a solitude that is infectious, broken only when the question of just how beholden we are to fate finally comes to a head. Delicate worldbuilding and trusting of the audience, this is a lovely piece of work that deserves some stage time.

A wistful and unabashedly whimsical “Dazed and Confused” for the millennials, Murray’s play is just goddamn lovely in every regard. It is chock-full of fearless, guffaw-inducing comedy (thankfully not fearless characters) and moves at a brisk pace that just sucks you into the world of these late 20s/early 30s-somethings finding their way and joy in what has become our society. I also must draw attention to some of the greater stage directions I’ve encountered, so specific in tone but just vague enough to let any production team play and play hard. Would LOVE to see this live.

There's nothing like an afternoon at the MoMA making fun of everything. Levine both evokes this spirit and the genuine multitude of profound, complex emotions art can evoke (for creator and viewer). He balances both wonderfully in this humorous short, while also throwing other variables like money necessities for dealers and how our age changes our perspective into the mix. A brilliant little piece that would surely be a hit any at short festival.

Each of McClain's triptychs is a treat, and Igniting provides us with a cavalcade of human emotions we don't like to encounter. It's a skillfully rendered and thought-provoking collection of short pieces, and the ashes they create stick around long after we take our eyes from the page. Lovely work.

We've all had that moment. That genuine, well-intentioned, but huge mistake that we only realize the ramifications of after the fact. Thankfully, Cross's victim here should be fine, and we all get to humorously learn the lesson of not using visual aids when it comes to teaching insects how to eat. Lovely little short.