Recommended by Andy Boyd

A beautifully-realized tribute to some under-sung heroes of Puerto Rican resistance. There's a perfect marriage of form and function in this play, which examines both literal guns-and-bullets violence and the violence of racist representation, especially including on stage. To quote someone who makes a surprise appearance, who lives, who dies, who tells your story?

Light Switch is a profound and funny play that smashes stereotypes about autistic adults while also telling a great story. As an autistic playwright, I found reading this play very inspiring. Henry is a character who learns and grows throughout the show, but that growth is on his own terms, not in search for some neurotypical "normal." I also appreciated the ways this play depicts autism as a strength, particularly in Henry's single-mided devotion to scholarly study.

A chilling minimalist play about a boy, a girl, and a ghost. David Foster Wallace said every love story is a ghost story, but is every ghost story therefore a love story? At any rate, this one certainly is. It made me think about the ways that tragedies we are only tendentially connected to sometimes tail us around, sticking in our minds far deeper than we feel they logically should. Why do certain things wound us so deeply? This seems to be one of the questions asked by this small, fragile, beautiful play.

A wonderful Western noir that’s as sharp and cynical as a Dashiell Hammet original — but leavened with a welcome dash (pun unintended but unavoided) of revolutionary optimism. Read it and weep, then organize.

FUKT is a bracing and funny examination of some very dark and serious issues around abuse, sexuality, and identity. The three versions of Emma all have sharply-contrasting wants (though the same real needs), and watching the three of them duke it out in words throughout the course of the play creates a richly three-dimensional portrait of a person and a character.

I saw Patience last night, and I was not bored for one second, which is very rare for me. I admit that a play about solitaire did not initially sound thrilling to me, but the way that becomes a metaphor for how even in competitive activities you're always primarily competing with yourself was subtle but incredibly effective. It's also very funny and air-tight dramatically.

A queer Southern gothic vampire rom-com? Need I say more? Okay, I will.

Riley's play is so fun and fascinating. This play was the August reading for Play Date at Pete's, and the (admittedly small) house was packed, everyone on the edge of their seats. I described this play afterwards as John Waters meets John Carpenter, and I still stand by that assessment.

ps: It's very funny Riley has tagged this play for all ages.

The best parodies are the ones that show an obvious love for the source material they're critiquing. Barbot's challenge in this play is parodying one of the greatest plays ever written. And folks? He nails it! Funny, moving, a genuine analysis of war and patriarchy and the woundedness of masculinity.

I had the privilege of watching this play grow from a seed of an idea into the wonderful creation it is today. Gina has created an incredibly human and honest portrait of a community that is both next-door in Brooklyn and a cultural world apart. Her gift for dialogue will be evident to anyone who reads it but her real superpower is empathy.

Perez does it again! A deeply engrossing two-hander about art and activism, and which is the real revolution. These two characters are so well-articulated and specific, and their developing relationship sucks you in. This is the kind of play that rewards actors willing to put in the work: I looked up from the page sweating and smiling and happy and sad.