Recommended by Steven G. Martin

"There's an Order to These Things" may be the most immaculately titled short play ever.

This is the first in Scott Sickles' Beauregard and Zeke series, and there is a lot of work done -- establishing character baselines so audiences can better determine how much they change (or not), establishing conflict to determine how much more conflict there may be.

Scott Sickles does a lot of work creating the world, the characters in the Beauregard and Zeke series. His skill at dialogue, action, character, and conflict rises to the challenge.

Sex and intimacy can intersect, but it feels like they rarely do. When the intersection does happen, though, it's exhilarating. When it happens for the first time in one's life, it's universe-expanding.

Scott Sickles develops the connection between Beau and Zeke even more deeply in "This is My Assistant Beaker." There are moments of connection beyond the purely physical. There are levels of trust and appreciation, of care and concern being expressed. And it's lovely that these two teenagers have found one another.

"Skin" is a tale of friendship, deepening.

Do people need to be exactly the same in order to feel sympathy? The answer, DC Cathro shows in this short play, is "no."

Melissa and Jo have different experiences of betrayal, and as they understand the context of those experiences, they don't attempt to qualify who had it worse. instead, there's is an acceptance and general compassion growing between them.

As always, Castro shows skill at using dialogue to define character, create conflict, and showcase people seeing others and their lives clearly. Everything is made clearer and brighter through his writing.

This one-act romance dramatizes the beginning stages of a relationship by showing us variations in a pattern.

Emily McClain is subtle and deft with her character work in "DoorDashed." There are also several moments that could serve as obstacles or gateways to Erica's and Marcus's connection.

Strongly structured and plotted, generous in characterization, natural in dialogue and tone. "DoorDashed" is a subtle one-act play that should enjoy a varied production history.

Teenage years: that dangerous time when everything is brand new and completely foreign to experience, and affects a person 1,000,000 times harder than it should.

These times are rife for comedy and, as Scott Sickles shows in this short play, compassion. "Would You Like Fries With That?" shows two teenage boys trying to figure out some basics together because there is nothing to guide them otherwise.

And even though thee are funny moments and responses, Sickles gifts Beau and Zeke a connection -- there's a quiet camaraderie brewing, an understanding. This is a generous play.

This laugh-a-moment short comedy delves into the topic of what makes for a wonderful, charming romantic relationship and how to develop one.

I had the absolute pleasure to read the role of PB in February 2021. Hilary Bluestein-Lyons has written a character both charming in itself and in tune with others' needs.

"Sometimes a Sandwich is Just a Sandwich" has lots of food-based humor, romance and love-based humor, and characters you've yet to see onstage. It is delightful how it hits upon content you want and expect, and then confidently goes further into the unexpected.

How much will we need to reorient ourselves to the world once the pandemic has passed? A helluva lot, as this 10-minute dark comedy makes clear.

Among Dominica Plummer's many strengths as a playwright is her ability to create characters who are fully focused on themselves, their world, and given circumstances. They're charming, good people but blinkered. Rose and Ally completely land in that queue, and their self-centeredness has consequences.

"Lunch" is darkly funny and the tension builds as the audience learns more ... and then the bottom drops out, and it's a new world to consider.

We have a new definition of "comic timing": dialogue "Grown-up things" followed at once by a bedsheet falling to the ground and revealing Dad wearing an all-latex, full-body, BDSM gimp outfit.

There are deadpan deliveries, visual jokes, situational humor, and a lot more to enjoy. But at its core: parents' being honest with their child in what must be an all-time awkward situation.

Thankfully "How to Talk to Your Child About BDSM" isn't set in a universe where door locks exist, otherwise we couldn't enjoy Daniel Prillaman's very funny, sex-positive comedy.

We put ourselves in extreme situations with the hope that someone will notice, regardless of whether they care is secondary. Sometimes we do it for ourselves, just to prove we can succeed.

Bethany Dickens Assaf uses action and physical space very well to tell the story of "Woman on a Ladder." It's visually interesting and adds an element of danger to the story. Plus, it puts both Jess and Dan on the same level (literally and figuratively) as they open up.

"Woman on a Ladder" is a terrific meet-cute with interesting action, backstory, and conflict throughout. Audiences will enjoy it.

This brief monologue recalls a life filled with poetry, a moment filled with joy and passion, all remembered and retold as a plea.

Vicki, the protagonist in D. Lee Miller's "Ball and Chain," steps forward to put the record straight. Now a grandmother, Vicki remembers a special moment while attending Woodstock, and that remembrance catapults her into a new future for herself.

This is a commanding monologue for a female actor in her 60s and 70s. Vicki takes a stand and changes her life. The audience will wish her all the best.