Recommended by Scott Sickles

The best reason to date Matthew Weaver: he's Matthew F-ing Weaver, people!!! But if one needs further convincing, 1) shame on you, and 2) here are the top 19 reasons presented self-effacingly, sincerely, and ever-endearingly by the playwright’s doppelgänger. Perhaps you will learn a few things you may or may not have known in your heart already: about Matthew Weaver and... about yourself!

Money... DOES THINGS to people. Especially when we don’t have it. Even more so when we don’t have in general and it very specifically goes missing. Missing money and playwright Conlon bring out the very worst in Pauline in this ripping workplace comedy, examining the boundaries of appropriate office behavior and how money dares us to cross lines. Two terrific roles for actors adept at physical comedy!

I could just write “#CurrentMood” and leave it at that.

The play takes a good old fashioned comic set up and delivers an important message that couldn’t be more timely, all in one tight page. Fast and funny with the right hint of melodrama and a grounded finish!

It really ain’t just a river in Egypt.

There are two kinds of denial - conscious and subconscious. Sometimes our minds do the dirty work. Sometimes we choose it ourselves.

Light and funny, then dark as the night highway. The characters must make a decision. The Right Thing is obvious but requires facing a potentially horrible truth. Busser examines the human capacity for morality in a fraught ten minutes. The characters and their decisions linger. One wonders if they’ll be as haunted as we are.

Where would art and poetry be without prostitutes??? NOWHERE!

Larry Rinkel loves the classics. Here he ressurects a literary mystery (who was the elusive “W.H.” to whom the Bard dedicated his sonnets) extrapolates the most likely source of inspiration (a rentboy) and tells an elegant and funny tale of a poet finding his muse. W.S. and W.H. are both fun characters for actors and audiences. It’s a fast ten-minutes and a joy for those who love a playful Shakespeare reference, tales of artistic creation, and a cheeky sense of historical fiction!

Sometimes we see beauty and we want to capture it in a photo. Sometimes it's nature, sometimes it's art or architecture, and sometimes it's people. It's not for lascivious purposes. It's because we've been moved. An impression has been made. You just want to preserve that image, even if you never look at it again.

Rinkel captures this feeling with all the longing and trepidation that goes with it. It’s Death in Venice in 60 seconds but without the humiliation and tragedy (or any creepiness). A simple journey, not without risk, with a perfect ending. A story of pure appreciation.

Some of the best playwriting advice I ever got was “people don’t speak in complete sentences.” It's often the characters' struggle to clarify (or obfuscate) their needs that makes for great naturalistic dialogue, great roles, and great scenes. Case in point: THIS PLAY!!!

Guyton is a master of hyperarticulation and inarticulation, sometimes simultaneously! He forges two real, complex characters you can't help but relate to and like. The piece tells hard truths about addiction, recovery and relationships in a perfect balance of humor and heart. You will want to spend New Year's Eve with these people!

A concise, deceptively pleasant, uncompromising primer on being raised by traditional East Asian parents. My mother once explained to our neighbors, “I always make sure my kids know they should be ashamed of themselves so they’ll try harder.” I was right there. Tsang’s monologue took me back to that moment. I eventually opted out of that game. To opt out is freedom. Tsang’s Kid chooses a different freedom, one all of us in that circumstance has considered. Will this kid be missed? Or will the relief be felt by all? There, but for the Grace of God...

Stories like this usually signal the loss of innocence. Somehow Matthew Weaver manages to simultaneously preserve and transcend that innocence. Tyler's consideration, integrity, and general good nature give this story its unique warmth. He's a sweetheart and you want good things to happen to him forever. The Moment is the bright exception to the dark rule that nice guys finish last. This time, nice gets the final rose!

Cela fait longtemps que je n’ai pas étudié le français mais j’ai réussi avec un peu d’aide de Google Translator. Un délicieux extrait sur le non-sens du Brexit du point de vue français, à la fois grandiose et sensé!

[It’s been a while since high school French but I managed with only a little help from Google Translator. A delightful snippet about the nonsense of Brexit from the French perspective, both grand and sensible!]