Recommended by Nick Malakhow

I am continually flabbergasted by how the ever prolific Rachel Lynett manages to churn out amazing new pieces that feel like they're speaking to the absolute current moment. This is a fast-moving piece that crackles with humor while it explores and tackles the complex and unsettling realities of cultural gatekeeping and anti-Blackness both within the Latinidad and the world at large, all with a deeply intersectional focus. These characters are incredibly well-defined, and I'm so excited to see how this piece continues to develop as it lives and breathes in readings, workshops, and productions.

Razor sharp satire that is essential reading and viewing. Stacey Rose has masterfully created a terrifying dystopia that presents not simply a "horrifying future," but rather a comprehensive exploration of current and historical anti-Black racism, white supremacy, white revisionist history, and the legacy of traumatic violence against Black bodies throughout the world but, especially in the United States. The storytelling is startlingly straightforward, while the piece is so incredibly nuanced, rich, and layered. Gutting and satirical and virtuosic.

I loved how the main dramatic action of this piece was grounded in all of these little seismic shifts between characters. Gill avoids capital T "Theatrics," but really manages to take us on a journey of change and evolution from beginning to end. The continuous action and well-rendered characters make for a compelling piece that explores family, tradition, gender, social expectations, and assimilation with a very nuanced brushstroke! Sensory details of taste and smell are used to wonderful effect as well.

A poignant and lovely short piece that melds together a human heart, an intriguing sci fi premise, and a potent political statement. Gill effectively takes a look at some of the ways that assimilation changes one's identity and explores the lengths people go to preserve some part of who they are. He does this with a simple but effective metaphor. This is a tightly written self-contained piece, though it also hints at a world I'd be interested to see explored further.

A chilling play that examines how fear of losing perceived power curdles into hatred, prejudice, racism, and violence. The white characters in this play are all intensely human and we learn much about their motivations and desires and insecurities, but Carey also doesn't let them off the hook while she's humanizing them. Jack, Pops, and Connor all represent three different types of white masculinity, each intensely problematic in their own way. A very high stakes, compelling drama!

A propulsive, theatrical, raw, and deeply personal story that manages to pair musical performance/cabaret with hilarity and wrenching truths about addiction and recovery. The frenetic storytelling is completely engaging throughout and I loved the structural tempo changes at key intervals. I can only imagine that this would be a true tour de force to see in person. An important narrative exploring the intersectional nuances of addiction, gay male self image and hook up culture, and the life of a professional artist.

The representation of the online world is delightful here, as is the entirety of Cho's bold theatricality that combines heightened and satirical tropes and clever double casting with a complex intersectional conversation about race/racism, love, and the fetishization of Asian and Asian American women. Janette and Grace's dynamic is hilarious and their connections and conflicts illuminate so much about the ways patriarchal white supremacy infects the sense of self worth of folks of different identifiers. The exploration here struck me as beautifully specific, while still allowing room for me to consider whiteness' impacts on other BIPOC folks.

A vulnerable, specific, and human monologue that explores a brand of grief not often centered in narratives. Malone paints a complex portrait here that captures the sadness, guilt, confusion, and cognitive dissonance of a prospective father losing a child. The tone is confessional, honest, and thorough and spoken with a light touch.

I love the skillful "showing vs. telling" in this piece which gives us all we need to know about these characters and the seemingly-farther-down-the-rabbit-hole pandemic world depicted. It's a perfectly structured 10 minute play with an affecting button. With the characters played as male, there are also sharply drawn parallels to the loneliness, anxiety, and longing for connection in gay male hook-up culture. I'd be interested in seeing the different layers/nuances that emerge with actors of various gender identities in these roles.

Steve Yockey's signature combination of everyday relationships and supernatural/horror happenings is used very effectively in this play about the tenuous and evolving relationships between mothers and sons. It's taut and captivating throughout the entirety of its continuous 80 pages and manages to be surprising, unsettling, a little scary, and very poignant. The visual/aural theatrical landscape is original, and I'd love to see it realized onstage!