Recommended by Paul Smith

This is an outstanding monologue; from the heart and the head. Painting a picture which is fully three-dimensional and which puts the listener/reader in the scene depicted. I doubt anyone would not be able to feel the emotions and smell the smoke. David Patton quietly tells a highly affecting and important story of a firefighter's experience which I have not come across theatrically before. A brilliant piece for an actor - a story that needs to be told. First rate.

Whooaaa! Hold on there! Where did this come from? As ever, I just love the wild and the off-the-wall. Lee R Lawing conjours up a modern story of blood-letting and vampirism with a direct connection to late 19th Century London. This tongue-in-cheek fantasy gives an actor the chance to revel in some lip-smacking lines while the audience watch on, opened mouthed! Dark, disturbing and downright deviant! Sharp as a pair of fangs!

Off-the-wall doesn't begin to describe Amelia? but this delightfully absurd piece by Evan Spreen does underline how it is the insignificant quirks in a relationship which can often make or break it. Spreen's mind leaps into the darkness and takes us with us and makes us smile and laugh and wonder just what we have read/seen. Loved it.

It is the small things that can make or break a relationship and the habits one gets into on first meeting that we cling on to as the foundation of staying together. In this wry and charming look at Sam and Richard's life, Lee R Lawing provides us with a beautifully crafted story of rekindling love played out with a list of cocktails to amuse and wonder at. A lovely piece of work.

Regrets, procrastination, big highs and low lows - all are combined so well in this tale of what might have been and what might be. Bruce Karp writes with great clarity of language and with a well-judged arc which creates a really full-length story in just a few minutes. An excellent wry piece of theatre.

A wonderfully wry and well observed monologue from Vivian Lermond who uses language like ingredients to make a perfect dish. Served up with a smile, this vignette of life is a cracker of a piece for an actor to deliver. Huge fun!

This is an extraordinarily powerful and deeply moving story of severe illness, love, courage and resilience. Through the use of a narrated journal the details of David's illness are explained as are the treatments and it makes for an emotionally charged and fascinating study. Ryan Kaminski writes with eloquence and heart. This is a tour-de-force for actors and an unforgettable theatrical experience for an audience. First rate!

What a complete delight is this brief insight into the work of Millicent Patrick - a new name to many and certainly to me. Allie Costa has beautifully brought her and her most famous creation to our attention in this lovely little fantasy with strong points made about the lack of respect and credit given to Millicent for her work - in a world of men.... A lovely short two-hander which almost begs to be developed into a longer and more detailed story. Fabulous.

I know that one shouldn't really...I mean, the work on which this is a spin-off is right up there...but I howled with laughter at what David Lefkowitz has come up with here. Quite honestly the funniest two minutes of theatre writing I have read in many a long time. Sublimely naughty and hilarious!

This is a remarkably lucid and engaging adaptation of these wonderful plays. Ian Finley and Alex Tobey have retained the power of the original stories and seamlessly connected then with the modern world - reading them you can see how utterly relevant they are to the 21st Century - and not least to the events of 2020/21. The compelling dialogue and insightful use of the Chorus illustrates just how smart the writers have been. As one who studied these plays at university I can only say that they have offered a very fresh interpretation. A dynamic and stunning achievement.