Recommended by Donald E. Baker

Wow. There is one word of actual dialogue in this play and it's the last word. Instead, the two characters narrate their stage directions, and they do so actively, in character, and in doing so reveal their innermost thoughts and feelings as, perhaps, a world of possibilities opens up at first encounter. One hopes, after the curtain comes down, they have many more words to say to each other as their relationship deepens. This is a lovely, original, and exceedingly well executed work audiences will love.

When a man still grieving the loss of his wife stumbles into a clairvoyant's storefront to have his tealeaves read (even though he really prefers iced tea to hot), the reading is as bogus as one would expect. But Miss Eleanor has a secret agenda and all turns out well with a lovely "awwwww" moment when an uncredited character makes an appearance. If you know an actor who likes playing quirky older women, point her toward this delightful script. Or better yet, buy her a copy of Cole's collection "The Wrinkle Ranch," which includes any number of such roles.

Let's just say bingo and chair yoga aren't the most adventurous activities offered at the unique mis-characterized "rest home" for wayward seniors. Sign me up! McGregor is a master of sly, off-key scripts that turn into delightful plays. Audiences will love this one, and actors and designers alike will have a ball preparing it.

What seems like a standard reluctant-witness police interview goes where none such has gone before. Literally and figuratively, Feeny-Williams leads us down the garden path to discoveries no one would have anticipated and then to a mind-blowing conclusion. The lead female character especially will challenge an actor in all the best ways. I heard and very much enjoyed this work during an online reading and recommend it highly.

When all the good parts seem to be going to younger actors, how do you finesse an interview to point up your experience and accomplishments without giving away just how long it took you to achieve them? The actor in question bobs, weaves, and deflects, but do their efforts pay off? A highlight of the plays I heard during a recent online reading group session. Sapio is a pro, and it shows.

Rose awaits the arrival of her husband to celebrate their anniversary. She even has his favorite cake all ready to share. But who is the mysterious stranger who comes bearing the gerbera daisy meant just for her? A lovely, gentle play for two people with the right chemistry. I enjoyed hearing it read online and look forward to reading it again when I get my copy of Cole's newly published collection of plays about growing older, "The Wrinkle Ranch."

You reach an age when a standard medical question is, "Did you fall in the last 30 days?" But when is a fall not a fall? That's the question "Autumn D’Winter, aged sixty-seven years young, owner of all my own teeth, driver of a BMW 118 Sport hatchback, fit as a fiddle" wrestles with after she finds herself on the ground in a supermarket parking lot. This feisty lady is a wonderful part for a "mature" character actor. I heard it read online by just one such performer and it was wonderful.

With "Tesseract," Scott Sickles proves one again that he is a master at channeling his "rage at the present and ... fears for the future" into powerful works of art. As in "The Second World Trilogy," he creates a dystopian world in which an extreme "Christian" nationalism has achieved absolute power and threatens the very existence of anyone they hate. Here the target is a trans child alone and vulnerable and, given the forces at work in our own society, his fate at the hands of true believers is all too credible. The play is a harrowing but essential experience.

Fleeing to a new job across the country after the dissolution of his long-term relationship, Marc is vulnerable to being manipulated into situations that threaten his job and his reputation. By the end of the play, lessons are learned, a villain escapes unscathed, a student finds his footing as an independent adult, and Marc finds that after adversity there is hope for future happiness. As a character, Marc is flawed but sympathetic. Another excellent, engaging work by Philip Middleton Williams.

As someone who has built a few train layouts of my own, I couldn't resist reading this play. It turns out to be a deep exploration of the difficult and complicated relationship of a father and grown son, as they attempt to complete a long-delayed project before the father dies of cancer. As the train layout gets built, the play itself builds revelation by revelation to a surprising and devastating conclusion. It's a long play by today's standards--three full acts--but devoting a little time to it will result in a most rewarding experience.