Recommended by Christian St. Croix

"Dance Into Night" is a truly gripping read. The characters are deeply developed, and the way the story moves between past and present keeps you hooked. The use of music (I'm a bit biased, the tenor sax is one of my top five favorite sounds) and unique settings add to the emotional impact. It's a powerful look at love, betrayal and redemption. Give Mr. Love his flowers, American Theatre.

Many of Vince’s wickedly smart works can be described as “genre bending”, but they go way beyond that. He’ll set a genre in a room and ask of it to stay quiet until audiences are certain they’ve found it (they won’t have), then he’ll whistle for it to reveal itself. Such is the case with this amazing short. What begins as a bittersweet story about shame and grief turns into something else entirely. Another home run, Mr. Gatton. As you read this one, keep its title in mind. It’s not a lie.

“Though there are still a few lights here and there. A few steady flickers.”

Wow does Scott Sickles have an incredible way with words. “Ghost Vacuum” is an achingly beautiful piece. Much—so much—can be said about its prose. Sickles’ Christopher has a fascinating brain that moves from noting how the lack of lights in North Korea at night appears as a “missing space” to him to musing about his lover’s jawline. Detail is one of this short piece’s many strong points. Respect, Mr. Sickles. You have a new fan.

Playwright Dillon Yruegas offers us a seat at the brunch table with a group of twenty-something queer friends of color in this fascinating short. Yruegas' characters are lively, charming and unapologetic about their goals and dreams. There's an interesting section where Q, an aspiring influencer, offers a theory about the magical motivations of Elsa from Disney's "Frozen". A short exchange between the lovesick Erik and the sweet, supportive Flor made me smile. I'd love to see this performed.

Beneath their last sunset, two Miccosukee/Seminole brothers talk about cricket frogs, their mother's hum, and the other things they'll miss. Montana Cypress' haunting short play is a reminder of the immeasurable cruelty of white colonization and the many bodies it left in its destructive wake. There is an open and boyish sweetness between the two brothers that will make you smile, but make no mistake: your core should be rattled by this piece. You should weep. You should rage. Many things have prevailed, but you should never forget the cost. Wonderful work, Mr. Cypress.

This quirky dark comedy begins with a low-stakes mystery that turns into a supernatural mystery and wraps with a bittersweet ending. Playwright Vince Gatton has his characters deliver their words in such a charming, matter-of-fact way, I’d feel comfortable with calling this a magical realism piece. There are many exclamation points beneath the quirk and the charm—including the importance of work morale and a much-needed primer on the diversity of India and its people—but the most heartbreaking for me was the tragic fate of an immigrant excited to start a new life. I loved this work.

Through a single actress, Denmo Ibrahim spins an incredibly touching father-daughter tale spanning a US government office, an airport and a reunion twenty-five years in the making. Ibrahim is an incredible storyteller. Her characters, Mohammed and Layla, are chatty and fascinating, both of blooming story and casual sincerity. Their respective journeys' hiccups will be familiar to those of us who have to navigate the world as people of color. Mohammed keeps his temper through a bureaucratic run-around. Layla turns the disarming charm on just to request a flight seat change. You'll root for them. This is some beautiful work.

I started this script five minutes before I had to leave work, thinking I’d read the first few pages and finish the rest later. I ended up staying, off the clock, until I’d reached the end. I just couldn’t put it down. What a beautiful, poignant, genius, funny, romantic, tragic ride it was. One of the most amazing slice-of-life ensemble stories I’ve ever read. Billy and Claire will have y’all ROLLING. Luis will break your heart. Denise will give you hope. Friends, brothers, co-workers, lovers, a neighborhood caught beneath the Chicago sun. Great, great work.

“Brought you down like my mouth was a trumpet and you was the walls of Jericho.” Wow. In this short, intimate piece, playwright Natyna Bean explores the enigma that is the Black police officer and the justified fears of those who love and lay with them. Bean’s catching prose delivers a relationship that’s equal parts sexy, hushed, apprehensive and loving. Matcha and Naya are that couple you don't want to leave. This was an amazing treat to read.

Alex Lin would like to make one thing clear: she did not come to play with y'all. In this short, satirical piece, Lin calls out the offensive tropes and archetypes attached to Asian/American-American women and the perverse westernized storytelling that corrupts their lived experiences. She isn't about word mincing and keeps the sources of the evil firmly within her crosshairs. Everyone can get some. I'd love to see this performed.