Recommended by Rachael Carnes

How do familiar places encourage us to account for the past, and where we are now? Weems explores these themes at Summer Camp - In this funny, warm and engaging play. I appreciate the opportunity the piece presents for an ensemble of women - and reading, I couldn’t help but imagine what fun a technical and design team would have creating crickets and lightning bugs and the smell of campfire... There’s something nostalgic about this work, an invitation to remember simpler days. But were they so simple? That’s left to us to decide.

Oh my goodness, a game actor would have a field day with this gem! Wyndham's sly as usual — On the surface, funny and irreverent — Giving voice to this husband, desperate to earn a few accolades, or just the right to do what he really wants to do — And underneath, the subtext speaks volumes. How I would LOVE to see this one onstage!

This poetically brilliant play creates pockets and folds for its characters to live in — The rhythm of the language almost like a sound score, with lush images hanging so effortlessly, you want time to stand still so you can spend a little time with them. What a wonderful moment this play is! Sobler has built a whole world, and let's us visit it, and as a reader, there's no rush... you can turn the kaleidoscope fast or slow.

The River Bride! Still haunted by this amazing tale after seeing it in Ashland in 2016. Can't download more than a sample here — But if you have the opportunity to read the full script, or to see a production, take it! Treviño Orta's voice is clear and playful — With bold imagery and deep characterization. Check out this writer, any way that you can!!

A lot of fun in just a few pages — With a zippy Who's-On-First back and forth. I love Rinkel's snappy dialogue and goofy setup. We need comedy in the world! And this one's a hoot.

Aw, this one hits in all the feels. Donnelly sets up a familiar scene: Parents struggling to cope with their unraveling relationship try to navigate caring for their boy. It’s such a common issue, handled here with nuance and humor. From the opening visual — dad in a Darth Vader costume, mom as Princess Leia - we see how hard they’re trying, even if they’re not sure how this goes.

Drawing us in with deep emotion, the twists and turns, a jagged edge. Wyndham’s capacity to create characters and moments is astounding, and he just keeps digging deeper into the mire. I swear, this writer’s fearless. This voice will tell you why. This monologue breathes with the trauma that doesn’t leave, a condemnation, a heartbreak, and asks a timeless question: Who do we believe?

Passion, jealousy and murder never got so many laughs! What a hilarious send-up — the Bard meets film noir and Monty Python! Not only does Minigan deliver plenty of pithy laughs, he creates a host of bonkers characters and shakes them like bugs in a L.A. jar. A total treat, and would be a double espresso to see in person. I love the setting, characters and zany plot.

Deeply persuasive and deeply humane. This piece feels dance-like, in its telling. Kinnally's rhythm and cadence — Her words — Define our better nature. This play's a balm for the soul.

In this engrossing play, King draws us into simple conversation -- we think -- but within this space, we explore big, meaningful concerns. I appreciate how King creates a clear picture of place, and metaphorically juxtaposes different perspectives. Look up, he asks -- look at the sky. What you see might depend upon where you are.