Recommended by Nick Malakhow

Wonderful, fascinating piece that explores machine learning, sentience, creativity, and human relationships in huge and profound ways. Laney's actions throughout provide a potent throughline, and the unfolding and escalating tensions keep the reader engaged throughout. Libby's examination of the intersections of friendship and artistic competition; the art and science behind inspiration and creativity; and the productive, impressive output of machines vs the ineffable nuance that is human creation provide a beautiful foundation to the compelling narrative. Laney and Chelsea's friendship is complex and well-rendered. I'd love to see this onstage!

I love the way that anxiety is both personified in Lolly and symbolized by the escape room--it's quite a powerful and unexpected representation of that struggle that feels true to the nature of these struggles. Furthermore, how wonderful to see such vividly-rendered and distinct characters whose intersectional identities are honored and explored at the same time their universal humanity is as well. I look forward to following the trajectory of this piece, and hope to see it developed and produced.

I love how this piece centers a diverse and dynamic ensemble. These kids are distinct and well-rendered and Dave's piece shows both the power and danger of the ways they are grouped together. We see how they are judged and lumped together and stigmatized and generalized, but also the ways they are a supportive collective for one another. I loved the theatricality of the piece--older actors playing younger, the talent show "practice" sequence, and just generally the use of dance, movement, and ensemble work. A brilliant choice for audiences of all ages--schools, take notice!

I love this play! Anyone who has ever had co-workers and who has worked in an office setting of some kind will find something to connect to. The complex, nuanced, and comprehensive way Gina Femia explores sexism, racism, macro and micro-aggressive behavior, white privilege and blindness, virtue signaling, and so much more is so very impressive. Femia is a master of subtle, microscopically-focused, observational naturalism. The dialogue is spectacular as is simply the specific selection of moments chosen to highlight. The ending is so satisfying and hopeful while being devoid of cliche. Beautiful!

The exquisite play is visionary! I've rarely been so fully wrapped up in the unique visual/aural world of a piece just by reading it. The language is both spare and profound, and Bates explores so much here, but really anchoring our empathy in the two-sided nucleus of Qi and Benny. The multi-faceted use of theater as ritual, performance, and poetry is striking. All of the theatrical details--choral/ensemble moments, direct-address third person of Raven, repetition, song--are somehow both eclectic and cohesive. The final coda at the end of the play is a poignant, effective punctuation mark. Beautiful!

Unsettling and compelling drama that explores suicide, mental health, and trauma in a fascinating way. I enjoyed how Gilbert played with time. It was both clear throughout that we were winding our way back and forth in the chronology, but I also never felt unnecessarily confused. On the contrary, the skillfully chosen time shifts helped propel the story and character revelations forward in a calculated and intelligent fashion. This piece definitely illustrates how there is no one "right" or "best" way to cope with and manage trauma. Guy's life is messy and complicated, yet not without hope.

There's a lot to unpack in this great piece of theatrical sci-fi, and also much to just simply appreciate from it as "straightforward" storytelling. The ethics questions propel the story forward. Looking deeper, Tenith is an extraordinary metaphor for the violence perpetrated against Black bodies, and the ways that Black people have had to adapt throughout history to escape, survive, and fight against racism, oppression, and dehumanization. Tenith's theatrically compelling shadow puppet origin story both feels like a huge design/movement opportunity and a powerful connection between the contemporary lives of Black people and historical traumas they arose from.

A compelling theatrical portrait of an artist and her relationship to the intersection between inspiration, creativity, addiction, substance abuse, and the people around her. Trip's journey and connections to Meredith and Nyx are engaging to read about. Erzulie and Trip's connection is, however, the central point of interest and artistic innovation in this piece. I loved how Erzulie was a metaphor for more than one thing--creativity, addiction, comfort, love--and how her presence simultaneously explored and dispelled the myth that addiction/escape=artistic virtue. I loved the vivid visual universe too--there is much here for a design team, director, and choreographer!

An atmospheric, powerful piece that packs a lot into a short play. The exploration of power, politics, gender, and race and nationality is complex, and Cooper-Novack manages to examine the historical legacy of these themes and issues. The palpable tension is masterfully-executed and hinges on nuanced and subtle shifts rather than contrived theatrics. Well done!

Stellar piece whose incisive humor is as powerful as its wrenching drama. Watching Nia navigate white supremacy as a Black female artist is compelling, horrifying, and fraught. To tell the story with mostly Black bodies is both an effective theatrical tool and a blistering critique of performative allyship. Vaughn-Jones succeeds in examining the multi-headed monster of patriarchal white supremacy by rendering all kinds of flavors of it. The two poems Nia performs are absolutely exquisite and the final scene between her and Topher is a masterfully-executed argument that indicts Topher and his false allyship without making him a villain.