Recommended by Bill Triplett

Rachael Carnes has a gift for turning the flotsam/jetsam of pop culture and pop sensibility into deliciously barbed humor that sort of gently rips our times. Wonderfully absurd on one level, yet perfectly logical on another, this short piece will make you laugh, cringe, and ponder -- sometimes in the same moment. Forget trials without charges or waking up as an insect; the real Kafkaesque nightmare is contemporary language. Take a ride on this surreal train -- you'll be glad you did!

What a bittersweet comedy Doug DeVita has written about growing up gay in 1970s Long Island! The fully drawn characters all live and breathe from start to finish in a poignant tale that takes on family dysfunction, adolescent sexuality, friendship, and secrets – and dazzles you with witty and sharp dialogue all along the way. All that, and meaty roles for actors, to boot. So well done!

Loss, grief, re-entering the dating scene, and single-parenting...of a teenage daughter. Not exactly the ingredients you'd first think of for a deeply felt comedy, but Allyson Currin mixes it all up and comes up with a delightful and moving piece. I found myself smiling, even laughing out loud in places, and then feeling my chest tighten at the heart-rending moments. And the ending got to me more than I could have ever anticipated. A lovely play, and very deserving of the attention it's getting.

There's a lot going on in this engrossing play, and Joe Martin keeps everything moving with a sure hand. Along with a pressing concern about fair and equal access to quality health care and health insurance, the action involves people struggling with love, loss, guilt, responsibility, fear, and their own destinies. Interlaced throughout the earnest seriousness of the play are some wonderful -- and wonderfully human -- moments that made me smile and even laugh out loud at times. And all of it powerfully theatrical.

Yep, both characters are 14, but the needs and fears they're experiencing will resonate with adults, for sure. Scott Sickles's triumph in this charming piece is to convincingly present a child worthy of your contempt, and then evoke your sympathy for her -- while making you laugh along the way. If you've ever felt lonely or unloved, even just briefly, you'll be right at home with Miracle and Bud...and the true nature of magic. Not hard to see why New York's Nylon Fusion Theatre produced it.

Think people have a hard time with intimacy? They got nuthin' on black holes. I don't know of another playwright who can infuse astral phenomena with human qualities -- fear and insecurity, specifically -- and make it not just whimsical, but sly and smart. Not to mention funny. Then there's the loving send-up of theater itself. Carnes has a unique gift of being quirky and crafty in the same moment, and "Ripple" is a perfect example of that. Wonderful piece!

If you're a fan of wry humor with snappy repartee -- and I certainly am -- then this is definitely a play for you. This would be so fun to see staged, not to mention that it could be easily/simply staged. A taut satire of routine and habit with a dose of irritable colleagues arguing over who is the more irritating. Well done, Larry Rinkel!

This short play has so much charm and wit coursing through it that I have a hard time believing it all happens in just ten pages. Greg Lam evokes a world full of emotions that play out differently with each version of the future we're presented with. And each one has an impact that builds on the previous one. I'd love to see this piece staged for all the reasons I've just mentioned, and also because it offers some wonderful roles for women. Truly a lovely and fun work!

Be it romantic or parental, obsessive love is obsessive love, regardless if you’re straight or gay… or trans. And when the object of everyone’s affection is lying comatose in a hospital bed, things can get even more complicated. Tina Esper’s wonderful play mixes realism, flash-backs, and fantasy to create a world of people clashing over what they think is right, especially their own definitions of love. Frequently moving, beautiful, and poetic. Keep an eye on this one.

Today, there's much talk about equal rights, dignity and respect for all, but does it really apply to everyone? Aren't certain leaders -- like kings -- still held to outdated standards because they symbolize the identity of a nation? Bartlett explores these questions through his marvelous updating of Marlowe's Edward II, whose homoerotic relationship with a friend since childhood is perceived as a threat to the state. An epic re-telling that resonates with the present.