Recommended by Rachael Carnes

They started with so much hope, so much vision! And... Then all their planning goes off the rails for this team of educators. A cheeky send-up, this play careens quickly into stentorian comic territory and I'm here for it. It'd be delicious onstage! A bright bit of holiday satire - Such a nice balance to all the treacle of the season. Refreshing!

A hilarious dive into the often farcical world of text exchanges. Tedford Kendall pushes stakes higher throughout, ratcheting up the antics to an absurd degree. It's delightful to see the resulting back and forth, and within it - Find the dynamics of this newfangled communication, where the banal and the base and the deadly-serious, might intermingle with lightning speed. Though it'd be fun onstage, I think this play would be easily adapted and performed on Zoom, as well. A perfect choice for colleges or universities.

What a timely, relevant conversation, about the itchiness of momentary fame, the way we seem attracted to it, though it's sad in its fleeting nature. Goldman-Sherman gets at the heart of it in this piece, wry and satirical, yet breathtaking in its emotional reveal. Especially in isolation, who *are* we? There's an existential question, a kernel of concern that can't be shaken. This piece is fun to read out loud, and would provide everything for an actor to sink their chops into. Brava!

A vacation in Italy sounds amazing - But is it worth the emotional wear to go with ones benighted parents? McClain gets right at the heart of an age-old dispute, as a couple navigates The In-Laws, unpacking old slights and teasing out a serious of hilarious 'what if's' -- searching for some sort of pasta-fueled resolution. I mean, Italy?! Sharp, irreverent, and a nice travel-oriented diversion when the only place we've all been in nine months is probably the grocery store.

What a gem! Floyd-Priskorn's world-building rings so clearly and this delightful afterlife office is populated with characters that would be an absolute joy to perform. It's on all of our minds - What happens when - And this creative, compelling narrative gets at the messy, emotional human fears and foibles within all of us.

The perfect play for these divisive times. Goldman-Sherman divines mathematical principles to find tremendous humanity in this poignant, yet evergreen piece. Teachers - of any subject - read this in your classrooms. Grown-ups, read this now. A balm for the beleaguered soul.

Oh my! What a clever concept and rich, revealing execution. Lamedman's dialogue is deliciously inviting, and this piece would be a playground for a team to engage with. It has everything: Humor, sex, donuts. It predates Covid, but I can see this play working really well over Zoom, too. Great stuff!

A deeply-felt, brutally-honest portrayal of a relationship on the rocks. The want has faded, the need between the characters bullied by their relentless obligations, to children, work, family. This is a couple stretched and tethered by time, yet between them is a surprising depth of humanness, a balance of internal and external pressures that make this one of the most relatable, and dynamic, depictions of couples dysfunction I've had the pleasure to read. Hoke's a master of magnetic dialogue, and the story and its unforgettable characters, pulled me in and held my imagination, for every twist and turn.

A play about history needs to feel fresh and alive, contemporary, current, to work, and Kaplan's magical, magnetic, heartbreaking new take on these staggering literary figures does just that. Whether you're a Brontë-phile or a newcomer to their gothic world, these multi-faceted characters, with their dynamic dialogue, and their story's deeply-felt themes, will draw you in. A shoo-in for colleges and universities, this play seems tailor-made for students to sink their creative teeth into.

A fast-paced, rhythmic somersault between God and the Devil, though I feel like this could be the disagreeing voices in my head, too. Existential, stark and funny — Bringing the loftiest sovereigns down to our most base needs. We all want to belong, after all, and in our shared isolation, with no end in sight, I found this play deeply moving. It's a short play that asks Big Questions. I love that.