Recommended by Emily Hageman

Beautiful storytelling with memorable characters. Wilder has created a fantastic, satisfactory play that is an engaging story beautifully told. You fall in love with the characters--from the stoic Mutt to the charming show-off Avery to the sincere and tough Dixie to the mean and serious Hank. I learned a lot from reading this play, but I was completely engaged by the story and couldn't wait to see where it went next. It would be very fun to see this staged--and any designer would have a ton of fun trying to figure out how to put a car on stage!

A majestic, beautiful, and extremely IMPORTANT play. This must be staged as soon as possible because it needs to be seen. Not only is it a remarkable lesson in history for those who may not know (myself included), but it is also a gorgeous story of revenge--and how revenge only hurts the person who seeks it. Diaz-Marcano gorgeously weaves in literary references throughout the show and the end had my heart pounding--and that was just from reading it. A stark, stunning, fantastic play that is clearly a labor of love. This play will go places. Highly recommended.

Haas has done it again. A powerful show for audiences of any age, but I could really see the teen crowd connecting with this. Perfect play on grief--the beauty that comes in the pain of missing someone. There is so much in this play--there is science and education, there is the fanciful and the strange, there is the past and the present and the future. This play is pure magic and to see it on stage would be magnificent. A play full of hope with fully fleshed out characters and a magnificent heart. Well done, Haas. Highly recommended.

Gorgeous play. It wouldn't do this show justice to simply call it a modern adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz" (though there are beautiful corollaries). This is a marvelous play, a mystical story about a very real woman thrown into a very unreal circumstance. The story is liquid and effortless, the characters are memorable and striking, and Johnson holds the heart of this play so carefully in the palm of her hand. Is life really better now than it was then? Johnson gives us an important reminder that life is beautiful wherever there is love. Highly recommended.

Oh good heavens. Carnes has created a delightfully absurd piece of theater that will have everyone nodding sadly and chuckling to each other (and perhaps gasping and pulling their feet up at the thought of snakes on the floor). Immensely relatable to anyone who has ever been under a bizarre and unfair boss while being desperate to please, this play delights in its quirkiness and really hits it home with a few hilarious zingers ("how do you know it's a he?") I think I can perfectly sum up this play in one word: MEOW? Highly recommended.

Absolutely chilling. I felt genuinely afraid as I read the play. This is so much more than a monologue, this an incredibly important piece of information. Robert does a magnificent job of pairing a laissez faire attitude with terrifying facts. How can be so complacent? After reading Robert's play, I have no idea. This must produced now when it is more important than ever because as Robert so keenly points out in this play, these "rights" are not right.

Barsha is fully fearless even though she has plenty of reasons to be afraid. Yet again, Wyndham has written a monologue for a person who doesn't get written for often--an Indian woman. Barsha is brassy and loud and larger-than-life and you don't know whether you should envy her husband or feel bad for him, but she is determined and admirable. Your heart breaks for her, but you certainly don't feel bad for her. Wyndham is a master at writing monologues that are meant to be SPOKEN, not just read. His stream-of-consciousness style is incredibly fun. Another hit, well done.

This is an absolutely remarkable show. In "Teach," everything is blurry. Gender is blurry, power is blurry, the truth is blurry. Nothing is exactly what it seems and everything can be interpreted one way or another. The truth becomes something impossible to pin down--and Hoke does a magnificent job of showing how NOTHING is simple. As an educator myself, the idea that you lose your humanity when you take on the role of teacher hit hard--and what are we really trying to do as teachers? Assign intelligence or build people? And how do you build someone? Powerful play. Highly recommended.

An absolutely beautiful piece of art. Barbot has created seven fully fleshed out characters--and three fascinating saints--that tell the story of loss and trying to find your purpose and searching for meaning in a way that is careful but bold, harsh but beautiful. There is such phenomenal layered storytelling in this play. It is difficult to describe, all I can do is tell you to read it right now--and then produce it. It's absolutely stunning and heartbreaking and will connect with any audience member who sees it in a truly profound manner. Highly recommended.

Wyndham has knocked it out of the park with another great monologue that all brave girls will want to perform. I was grinning when Zoey pointed out that the principal's shirt was very inappropriate as well. Zoey is fearless and smart and never truly disrespectful, but she is mad and rightfully so. She makes good points, but unfortunately, they seem to fall on deaf ears. If you've never read one of Wyndham's monologues out loud, do so now because it is a ridiculous amount of fun. They would bring out the best in any actor. Well done, Wyndham.