Recommended by Nick Malakhow

An original and theatrically compelling exploration of family, grief, and how those two very personal spheres of one's life are inextricably tied to larger cultural and political ones. I appreciated how it felt the play became more expansive and symbolic as it progressed, while still not losing its specific and familial core. I am absolutely obsessed with the theatrical conceit of the audience being blindfolded and I was excited at what the aural landscape of the play would be as I read. Eager to follow the developmental trajectory of this and to experience a performance of it!

An honest and unflinching exploration of mental health, therapy, and the bodily impact of major depression on one's physical, physiological, and emotional beings. Franky manages to capture such potent and wide reaching themes while telling this unique and specific and personal story. One of the things I find most compelling about it is how he illuminates and theatricalizes therapy in a way that is genuine and eschews any tropes of "dramatized therapy" one finds in media depictions of it. This piece should be produced far and wide and will be helpful for many people--myself included.

A quick and compelling read that explores a lot in a compact space--influencer culture, the commodification of the lives and bodies of women, addiction, storytelling, and more. Romeo probes important explorations about how technology and obsession with celebrity and consumer culture destroys as quickly as it builds a person's self worth and livelihood. The storytelling tricks and reveals are all very clever here, particularly the poignant final moments. I'm interested in following this piece's developmental trajectory!

So sharp, incisive, and hilarious. It's a piece that's definitely so spot on re: the state of American theater that it is as cringe-inducing and uncomfortable (in a good way!) as it is funny. While the setting and world of the play is uber specific, there are such profound and universal conclusions it draws about the hypocrisy and dysfunction of ostensibly liberal institutions (much like Spector's "Eureka Day"). I'd love to see this in production!

An intimate, nuanced piece populated by some fascinating characters! The exploration of the question of who has the right to tell certain stories, specifically ones based off of real people, is complex and approached from many different angles. The potent conflict between Finn and Silas is juxtaposed so intriguingly to Silas' connection with Maxie. The spare beauty of the language felt, at once, wholly naturalistic while also extraordinarily poetic. Carla is a master as building multi-faceted central characters whose actions you question just as much as you desire for them to succeed and be ok.

A subtle, powerful, potent work that captures so many of the fears, anxieties, and questions swirling around in the United States right now. In a society that so often equates self-worth and power with money and employment, each of these characters' dashed dreams or hopes for the future (sometimes coexisting at once) feels so urgent. It's so easy to see how and why these tensions and characters bristle against one another, but Deborah renders all conflicts with such a light, deft hand. With its intersectional focus and relevant themes, this play needs to be produced now, many times!

I will never look at a corn field the same way again. Also, this play is hilarious. Also, it examines anxieties, friendship, family, and neuroses...mining genuine insights about those things in quite an original way. The vibe is Dazed 'n Confused meets Waiting for Godot meets David Lynch meets Gregg Araki. Never did I realize I wanted those aesthetics combined. I would love to see this staged and look forward to hearing about its developmental trajectory.

A spectacular, original play that manages to conjure the exquisitely personal, confessional feel of a solo show while not sacrificing the audience's intricate understanding of the relationships between characters onstage (and off!). Rivers truly excels at crafting dialogue that sounds naturalistic while "sonically" also feeling lyrical and poetic--both at the individual line level and in the ways that the various characters' monologues interlace with one another. I would so love to see this onstage!

I loved reading about this constellation of characters and the ways each of their needs and wants bumped up against the needs and wants of one another. Dave did it all in a subtle and fine-tuned fashion and with an always conscious eye towards the intersectional identities of his characters. I especially appreciated the nuanced revelation Jamie has about Theresa after running to her as a potential "safe haven." I also loved the way that these characters "make their way" back to each other in messy, complex, and yet still hopeful ways.

A poignant and devastating exploration of loneliness, connection, mental health, and how we define self worth and meaning in life as those themes connect to celebrity, reality tv, and contemporary media. I found myself rooting for Stan and Evelyn throughout and being affected and gutted by the ups and downs of their time together. I did appreciate the structural connection to the earliest tragedies--the journey felt both inevitable and still shocking as new elements of it were revealed. I'd definitely be very interested in seeing this powerful work staged!