Recommended by Susan Middaugh

Delightful play on words for the title about a woman who is fed up getting the short end of the employment ladder even though she's contributed mightily to a company's profits. Sweet revenge. Now she's self-employed with a nice twist. I also like John's artistic statement -- to the point.

Good contrast between these women. Vivian convinces us they're from Brooklyn with their speech patterns. Pauline is a good friend to Esther in nudging her to try something different, starting with a drink, then opening her mind to possibilities.

The sister's Christmas gift to her inmate sister is to be patient and tolerant, not to interrupt her when she tells one lie after another. The sister is the best kind of actor...letting her inmate sister "be someone else for a bit." Poignant, moving regret.

I wouldn't want to tangle with Ilsa when she's on a mission for the truth. Dogged she is. You might feel sorry for George if he wasn't such a coward. Chilling. Well done, Brigid.

First surprise: Andy's daughter is a cat. He and Marsha, his ex-girlfriend, argue over the cat's custody in this short play about a romance that is not about to respond to CPR. Fortunately, they discover they're on the same page about the need for Marsha to have her along with her litter box. Fun!

An adult son and his elderly father act surprised about the loss they felt when actors and singers they liked but didn't know passed away. But then the conversation gets closer to home. The father describes the impact his young son's announcement had on his mother when Kennedy was shot. The adult son was unaware of the grief he caused, grief which his father has forgiven him. An intimate moment.

Rich Espey's short play anticipated the Black Lives Matter Movement. It's about an employee who manages encounters with customers by rote and who feels threatened by a customer who thinks and acts differently, who tries to engage him in conversation and poetry. Well done. It deserved to be a finalist for the National Award from City Theatre for short playwriting.

A college student in need of a summer job to pay her tuition runs afoul of her co-worker who's also a family friend. Sparks fly when Jess tells Amy about real threats if Amy continues to show up Jess and the other assembly line workers with ways to save the company's time and money. Will Amy's idealism win out?

The playwright makes you feel the actor's rage and disappointment over her relationship with her now ex-fiancee in a concrete realistic way. Despite the turmoil the virus has helped her to see the situation as it is -- and change. In this case, the crisis has helped her do an about face. Optimistic.

Mother and adult daughter care deeply about one another. They offer each other unsolicited advice about sex, men and doctors. Under duress, mother, who is addicted to prescription drugs, agrees to fight it with her daughter's help. Moving, realistic, hopeful.