Recommended by Charles Scott Jones

A play that is mostly 2 women talking on both sides of a door establishes intrigue - both Jaden and Lilia know much more than the audience until the reveal and it's fascinating trying to figure out what's going. The symbolism that harkens back to a neighbor borrowing a cup of sugar and in so doing begins a communal bond - is very powerful in this desperate context. SUGAR by Jennifer O'Grady is an important play and I feel fortunate to have read it.

If you’re a long time creative writer and reader, the conversation between Drone 1 and Drone 2 has an extra edge. The seeming indifference of where content comes from is the driving anxiety of this scary glance into the future. LUNCH BREAK AT THE PARAGRAPH FACTORY, by Adam Richter, begins with this terrific title and builds from there. A favorite moment from the drones: “It’s their system. We just happen to live in it.” Fine work from a perceptive considerer of the future. I look forward to reading more in this series.

Somebody reanimated on the wrong side of the bed - in the early going of Aly Kantor’s fantastic short horror play COME BACK RIGHT - and then things get deep, complex, amazing. I really admire the use of repetition with variation - how each plot segment is more fascinating than the one before - creating a sense of anticipatory delight that I seldom ever feel in a short play. Tremendous work! Compares well with one of my favorite short plays: The Death of Trotsky by David Ives. Thank you so much for writing this gem!

Undoubtedly this will be the most charming “necromance” you’ll ever read. BAD NECROMANCE by Tom Moran allows us to witness Morris, a novice in the dark arts, restoring the life of dowager Belinda’s dead cat. The tone is creepy and funny at the same time and the comic use of ominous props is superb. I laughed out loud at the roller coaster joke and loved the trick Belinda has up her sleeve, and, of course, the resolution. Well done!

DAMN! - as I labor and fail to exclaim in a uniquely weird way - that does justice to this insane and ghoulish and earthquaking small treasure. Fantasy comparisons for EVERYTHING HERE IS SO DELICIOUS come to mind - a futuristic Jonathan Swift sniffing glue and rewriting A Modest Proposal - a deranged neo-Sophocles kinking-up Jocasta and fine-dining the Oedipal story. Luis Bunuel. But this satire piece is very much its own thing. The use of diction (“disabuse” is perfectly placed) and the imaginative powers of David Hilder are prodigious. This had me going the whole way.

If you think of playwriting for mature actors as a high dive, then this one’s a triple flip with a clean landing. Twisting, turning, flipping outstanding! And it’s a Christmas play that comes to life with two original characters in a realistic scenario. Claire’s hilarious insults to Brian don’t go too far and the way he fields them make them such an endearing couple. The title THE UNEXPECTED DELIGHT OF SNOW BIRDS made me think first of actual birds in winter, which - turns out - was cool. Please read and stage LDF’s holiday delight.

I’ve been thinking about KANGAROO since I read it yesterday. Lily and Sophia’s conversation is a fascinating one, a kind of descendant of August Strindberg’s naturalistic short comedies. It delightfully feels as if you’re eavesdropping where you least belong. The intimate character revelations that Paul Donnelly deploys keep interest very high. The title KANGAROO becomes a kind of third character that weighs in with both symbolism and functionality. Amusement too. Lily gets at the crux of her troubles with the line: “You know I’m lost on my own.” I love this play.

How do we know when to be silent? How do we know when to be interested or when to be simply alive? These are questions at the foundation of A FIREWORK UNEXPLODED by Dave Osmundsen. I emphasized with both talky Ned and quiet Gina - Ned for his need to explain rocket messages and stamps and fireworks, and Gina for her frustration in his repeatedly offering the soda she didn’t want. This play offers insight and sadness beneath the pyrotechnics - into the choices made by two people who aren't well suited for each other. Nice work.

From the title CASSIE STRICKLAND IS NOT UNDER THE BED to the white-knuckle inducing stage direction in the last pages, this is a riveting, extremely well-crafted short horror play. It’s inspiring how Vince Gatton uses each of our childhood imaginations (the archetypal fear for what’s under the bed) to get us inside Clay’s fear and feel it along with him - while also wanting to side with skeptic Howie. There are many great lines that make this frightening story come to life. I love Howie's line about people not knowing how to act around Clay.

This short death march play by Arianna Rose is absurdist, minimalist, theatrical, and very well-executed (oops, accidental pun). There’s rich symbolism - the contrast of L.B., Eric, and Mary wearing masquerade eye masks while chained to one another in rags and marching in place. I LOVE A PARADE with its distinct voices manages to be tender, angry, and gallows humorous. The resolution with the entrance of the mask-maker Lisette and Mary's lucid reaction to her is a powerful statement about the role of culture in the totalitarian state.