Recommended by Paul Donnelly

Rule breaking at it's most hilarious. Probably even funnier in performance.

Darkly comic and thoroughly riveting, Bereavement Leave takes us into a creepily familiar dystopian workplace and buffets us with a heady mix of wit, horror and banality. I laughed, I gasped, but ultimately I admired and enjoyed this work unreservedly.

This play is hysterically funny, with a skewed perspective and a fresh voice that make it a real delight. The use of Zoom is masterful throughout. The characters are bizarrely engaging (or is that engagingly bizarre?) and the deeper we go into the premise the more the laughs build.

Gut-wrenchingly funny. The juxtaposition of a child's innocent cluelessness with the parents' knowing and growing embarrassment becomes progressively more riotous. As much fun as it is to read, this is clearly a piece that would be more fun to see.

A delightfully disturbing confection. Thank god Mrs. Trelawney Justice returns in time to stop Daniel Prillaman from executing his nefarious plan.

The loss of language is especially terrifying to a writer. Steven G. Martin offers a stunning exploration of the loss and the terror in Recognition.

A cleverly constructed bit of artful wordplay. It isn't even necessary to know the titular Emily McClain or her work to be deeply amused.

I am gobsmacked. Powerful doesn't do this play justice. Riveting. Shocking. Deeply Disturbing in a way that rings harrowingly true. The comic build-up of expectations, the sobering reversal and the final awful twist make for a gripping and vividly theatrical experience.

How often in late middle age does one wonder, "how did I get here from there?" Bill and Paula confront this very issue as they struggle to salvage their failing marriage and remember the promise of their younger selves. There is such wonderful lyricism in the way their memories are rendered that I can't help but root for their present selves to revive some of that promise.

The struggle with body image lies heavy on Brent. But this taut and compelling monologue addresses many aspects of masculinity and the ways personal history and perceived societal expectations shape our present selves. The open-ended conclusion is sure to provoke animated discussion.