Recommended by Robert Weibezahl

Comedy is tragedy plus time, but the acerbic banter of the couple in ‘800 Miles’ cannot mask the pain, loss, and loneliness of empty-nesters whose marriage has long been held together by their identities as parents rather than spouses. Goldman-Sherman cuts to the bone with wit and unspoken truths, offering a glimmer of hope as the couple lights into untried territory.

The clash between high art and commerce is played out with unabashed ardor in this thought-provoking play. The characters, many of them on the downhill side of middle age, struggle to preserve their dignity (and livelihoods) in a brave new world that no longer values their intelligence or accrued knowledge. A great piece for a theatre company with seasoned, older actors, ‘Capriccio Radio’ will speak to a cultured audience that feels its tastes have been relegated to dinosaur status, but also to a new generation that wishes to learn about and appreciate the great music that is our collective legacy.

This charming bit of Irish whimsy beautifully captures the singular, leg-pulling wit of the denizens of the west of Ireland and the uptight demeanor of an American abroad.

“A Moment of Clarity” beautifully captures a brief, but very real moment between an elderly father sinking into dementia and his 60-something son. Anyone who has watched a beloved parent deteriorate will relate, but the real message of this lovely play may be that, no matter how old, we are always children in need of guidance and protection in our parents’ eyes, and our parents will always be our first heroes, no matter how imperfect or complicated our relationship with them may have been.

A very human comedy about aging, change, and facing the future while weighing the past. The two men in the play--so different and hence so believable as a compatible couple--are by turns tender, irascible, honest, defensive, and ultimately forgiving. There is so much subtext in this brief encounter, and I would love to see Paul and Adam's story expanded into a longer, even richer play.

Dickens plays fast and loose with reality and expectations (and the space-time continuum) in this hilarious comedy about alternative scenarios of what we think we want, the choices we do and do not make, and the inevitability of those choices. A crackerjack reading at the Midwest Dramatists Conference kept the audience guessing--and laughing.

I saw this highly engaging play at FutureFest in Dayton where it was selected as Audience Favorite--and it is easy see why. Pentimall Bookler has unearthed a little known incident from the night the Titanic sank and given fresh perspective to a story about which we thought we had learned everything. In the playwright's assured hands, Captain Lord is a classic symbol of inert power over reason, the other crew members all wholly-drawn humans battling notions of duty over conscience. On the Horizon is compelling from start to finish.

A beautifully restrained play about an unlikely friendship formed during a short ride on the Staten Island Ferry. The very real characters open up to each other with tentative caution at first, until the empathy that unfolds blooms. The playwright implicitly understands her characters and it shows in each measured line of dialogue.

Buried is a gem of a short play. A reading I saw at the Midwest Dramatists Conference was a near-perfect rendering that captured the special bond between the teenage twins that Webb has so masterfully created.

Larry Rinkel beautifully captures the palpable apprehension yet tantalizing promise of teenaged sexuality and love in this sensitive, funny, and moving short play.