Recommended by Rachael Carnes

Just saw the world premiere of this fun play at Oregon Contemporary Theatre. Stolowitz builds comic momentum from the get-go, with delightful, engaging characters stuck in a tasting room of a vineyard in Oregon's Willamette Valley. There are plenty of laughs, but the writer doesn't shy away from the 'what does it all mean' stuff, too. I like her sense of place, the development of her female characters and the way she brings in the unexpected. Brava!

Are you reading and producing Asher Wyndham's work? If not, why? His voice is a clarion call — Sensitive and forthright — And his plays offer genuinely new ideas and carry the action and energy necessary to sustain them. This play's no exception. Here Wyndham captures — with a breathtaking economy — the absurdity of arming children with defense mechanisms against terror in their classrooms and the noxious routines of hyper-masculinity that creates that need. Not sure how he even does it. Just read it!

I had the opportunity to see this play's world premiere at Portland Center Stage. With humor and grace, Szymkowicz takes a gentle approach to developing out deeper themes of love and loss and longing, in this character-driven ensemble work. It's an accessible piece, centering on a friendly narrator who drops us in on the lives of likable townsfolk. We'll be seeing more of this play soon.

From the very first moments of this devastating play, Wyndham sets us in the hands of reality through subtle, relatable action and revealing, universal imagery. A child holds a Ziplock baggie full of coins — Chore money — And oh, those blinking shoes sure are neat. Here Wyndham departs — Pulls tight at our emotional sinews — Making raw and uncomfortable and all-too present the conversations parents have with their children every day about living defensively in this world where gun violence is an ever-present threat. This piece, featuring a child actor, would be a profound gift to any stage.

I had the opportunity to read this play aloud in a workshop setting and I'm struck by how natural the language feels, how richly detailed and deep the characterizations are, and what strong themes Hoke develops, in just a few pages. The premise will feel familiar to anyone with children or teens involved in any competitive activity — Hoke takes on big tropes and doesn't shy away from big questions. This one-act would be a dynamic piece for any creative team to explore, overhanging with possibility and nuance. Hoke has the chops to write characters who seem so very real.

I recently had the pleasure of reading this creepy-as-hell play aloud in a writer's workshop. Burdick sets up such great inventory here, pacing the language to up the tension with every step. I love how literary it feels, on balance with chilling detail. Would be a delightful experience in a theater, radio show or podcast.

I had the extraordinary opportunity to attend the world premier of this play at Artists Rep in Portland, OR. Lewis has created a prescient and revealing work, one that explores the very nature of what it means to be human on the edge of — A place of deep discovery and disconnect, of sheltering and isolation. Set in the mid-1980's, at a moment when it's revealed that we are entering a new era where we humans are changing the earth's atmosphere, what? When? How will change happen? This work is of and by and for our time. It is genius.

Asher Wyndham has such a clear voice through his collection of monologues and this one is no exception. A beautiful, warm, funny and heartbreaking window into bullying and its impact on a believable, articulate child. There is such a paucity of contemporary work for children — And this relatable, timely new monologue fills that niche. It would be a wonderful audition piece for any young actor, or a powerful accompaniment to a performance of short works.

Funny and smart, Weaver's plays move with an enviable bounce and verve. His natural, human dialogue is matched by surprising revelations that keep us guessing. This winning combination - a kind of believable suspension of disbelief - makes the words on the page as tasty as cheeto flavored Doritos. You read one Matthew Weaver play, and you're going to want to read another!

I've been hearing great things about this play and recently got my hands on it to read for a local theater. Wow! Crackling dialogue flashes with white heat in every single scene. You can almost smell the steamy kitchen, hear the sizzle and see the global connections and ramifications materialize as this rich play unfolds. Snider's enviable mastery of humor is matched with his fearless thematic development. I would love, love, LOVE to see this in production. And I'm going to tell the local producers just that. :)