Recommended by Mark Loewenstern

This is a neat trick. A credible tale of meeting Death at the end of a difficult life which is affirming, warm, funny, even sweet. Sickles adds to the mythology of what is there with us at the very end and the effect is compelling.

More than just a fascinating biography of a literary master. More than just a hilarious yarn about how Kafka's works came into our hands. Rich Rubin serves up a canny investigation, an entertaining demonstration, of the essence of kafkaesque -- the living nightmare that is so subtle we can't look away, and so darkly funny, so familiar, that we don't want to. It's rare theatrical accomplishment I don't recall seeing anywhere else. Would love to see this staged!

Fun! Satisfying! Surprising! A lightning fast comedy with belly laughs and unexpected insights. Would love to see it staged.

Not a beat is wasted in this elegantly written thriller of a 10-minute play. I was fortunate to attend a performance and SUGAR held the audience spellbound while it drew us a map to a necessary and real escape route. Wonderful, useful work! Deserving of many productions.

We adults have been poor stewards of this world, and are leaving our children with a messy future. Floyd-Priskorn nails this reality with a seemingly effortless page of dialogue that makes fairytale monsters appear as quaint and reassuring allies against the horrors that are to come. An elegant and moving one-minute play.

Respect "RESPECT THE NOSE." It's not just a fascinating exploration of clowning. It's also an inspiring anthem to self-expression, a useful meditation on finding your own voice that is distinct from the culture surrounding you. A great piece for young actors.

Powerful and also subtle. Deeply moving and full of dangers and yet somehow also sweet and funny. In THE OKTAVIST, Gatton masterfully weaves many threads together to satisfying, compelling effect. Deserving of many productions. Bravo!

Exquisitely dark. Unquestionably funny. You may laugh, as I did, with a tinge of fear and hysteria. This unsettling play plants its horror in a novel location -- an innocent brain -- where the effects are ever-present and yet always out of reach. A wickedly brilliant betrayal that pays dividends over two lifetimes.

An excellent and useful play which maps for us how toxic people slip past our defenses, and burrow into our lives. It is leavened with Sickles's signature wit, not the ostentatious, superficial kind, but rather the wise wit that comes from knowing well one's friends and enemies, and oneself. It's the wit that spots and understands all the shades of pain and hope, and calls them out that we may share them. Hairdresser on Fire then sticks the landing, leaving us with the kind of tale that should be taught in high school health classes.

Was fortunate to see a production of this play earlier this year. Like a Canterbury Tales or Decameron, this play gives a multi-faceted view of the world, where each tale builds on the ones that came before, widening and deepening our understanding. Garcia then goes a step further, as the tales influence the people who hear them, impacting the journey they are on. Great stuff. Should be produced again.