Recommended by Scott Sickles

A tiny little heartbreaker of a play, especially if you identify with the loss it explores. As economical as it is complex, a perfect illustration of the end of the parent-child relationship before it turns into memory.

Like all the best scary stories, what's familiar about them heightens their effectiveness. DeRay pulls all the right tropes out of the campfire story treasure chest and fashions a classic of his own. The slow build from a normal night to terror is paced perfectly. Expectation breeds suspense. The atmosphere is so vivid you can see, hear and practically smell the setting. It's great scary fun!

The multi-edged sword in every TV writers room: racial diversity and how to depict it – tokenism vs inclusion, cultural truth vs stereotyping, being considerate vs condescending, and what issues in representation are important. Also fuckability, that's huge!

IT'S ALL IN HERE in a trick, rapid-fire satire fueled by verisimilitude in its characters, setting and premise, and by deftly examining a complex issue within the confines of the story. It's also funny as all get out and easy to produce!

A fascinating, multilayered glimpse into the life of a sex worker. When people think of sex workers, they picture the job and not the life, certainly not the time they spend babysitting!

Fauntleroy provides her protagonist with a clear, unique persona and takes us through an entire learning process in a few short minutes. And who better than a sex worker to contemplate the conundrum of welcome and unwelcome physical contact, be it a simple hug or something more intimate? The dynamics of how consent is manipulated by societal and interpersonal expectation is thoroughly examined in a powerful story.

O, if only the emotional support service provided in this play were real... and worked better.

A hilarious piece about a woman and a man who have trouble communicating their feelings, and the people to help make those feelings ABUNDANTLY CLEAR. Fauntleroy's depiction of insecurity (romantic and political) in an age where we let our tech do the communicating for us is spot on, hugely identifiable, and emotionally resonant.

Find four actors with great timing and unshakeable deadpans, and put on this show!

And all the sudden I’m crying! Damn you, Steve! Damn you!

A beautiful snapshot of everyday boys on a day they’ll only have once. A moment between brothers leaning on the emotional legacy that’s been passed down to them. Oh, my heart!

A whirlwind turned maelstrom of a conversation between four generations of women, EGG IN SPOON covers a tremendous amount of ground in a very short time. The issues are woven so seamlessly into the conversation, which in itself is incredibly lively and entertaining, the play doesn't even feel political until it gut-punches you with the reality of the world in which these women live. An intricate microcosm about the challenges women face at varying stages of life, past, present, and possibly in the future! Great roles for female-identifying actors and easy to produce.

Simple, truthful and harrowing, THIS IS HOW IT STARTS is a breath away from becoming a reality, if it hasn't already. With the nation in the midst of an active genocide, or at least a series of crimes against humanity, people are asking why soldiers, ICE agents, etc., aren't speaking up and refusing to follow orders they know are wrong. Melissa Bell confronts that question with a possible and likely answer, and it is disturbing.

There are multitudes in this wee play! Claudia Haas lures us in with some hilarious combative banter, introducing us to two characters we want to spend as much time with as possible. They're on a mission, or rather she is and he's there to help. Gary provides a wonderful window into Lucy's world, one that is both magical and natural. It turns out that he's her ideal helpmeet for the afternoon. Haas gives us the why and the wherefore in due time and at the perfect moment. What started out madcap becomes heartfelt, and it's the most natural thing.

Instead of six characters in search of an author, Emily Hageman gives us four characters, each and all in search of a reader. But until one comes along, all they have is each other and the stories that brought them into existence while also holding them in the iron grip of fate! Not all of them are thrilled.

When you can't make it through the character descriptions without laughing out loud, you know you're in for a treat! CHECK ME OUT does not disappoint! It's a relentless cavalcade of literary references, character-driven wit, and belly laughs.

Just damn wonderful!