Recommended by Audrey Lang

BLOOD ON MY MOTHER'S APRON is a thoughtful (and well-researched!) look at a challenging historical figure and, in particular, her daughter. Leighson embraces the complexities of Polly Dyer's life and utilizes a combination of court transcripts and original text to create a compelling story. I was thrilled to feature BLOOD ON MY MOTHER'S APRON and playwright Rachel Leighson on my podcast "Favorite Child"! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rachel-leighson-complicated-women…

Eight Nights is a beautifully constructed play delving into longstanding and generational trauma. Though so much comes to mind, so much has already been said in the numerous existing recommendations for this play! This is an extremely theatrical piece that doesn't shy away from difficult conversations, despite the central character's own resistance to having the most difficult one.

This is a thought-provoking play on so many levels, among them race and art. It's a highly visual play that would be so fascinating to see staged. I also found it very compelling to watch Sarai's journey in finding herself -- something that felt surprising and unique, as so often stories follow students discovering identity, not their teachers.

LUCKY is a beautiful, layered journey. Both the Waitress and the characters from her world, as well as Lucky and the other characters from the world of the story-within-a-story, were drawn and painted with exquisite detail. I loved the way that the Waitress found herself and what she wanted from her own life as she told her protagonist's story.

With just these five vivid and thought-provoking characters, Vince Gatton has shown us the entire world in ALEXANDRIA. Though I just finished reading the play, I immediately want to start again from the beginning and try to find new discoveries. ALEXANDRIA is an exciting page-turner that also has deep humanity; the reader or viewer is kept engaged in the plot and with each individual and unique character.

DESARROLLO is the kind of play that feels like floating. The personal relationships are real enough to reach out and touch, but so exquisite that I'm scared if I do, they will disappear and I won't get to finish the story. Simultaneously as this is the story of people, it is the story of a changing neighborhood that is as much a character as the humans who know and love it. I love that we catch the young Nelly, Alaida, and Sol as they are working through their "bucket list," already aware of the limits of time.

YAELIS is a modern legend that weaves together the present with many pasts in a profoundly beautiful quest that the title character undertakes to find her mother. On her journey, she finds herself, her heritage, a friend, and so many new reasons to live. I love the way juliany taveras shows the magic and wonder that exist in the worlds they create.

I was instantly obsessed with "The Children's Farm" when I read it as a reader for BAPF, and it has taken incredible restraint to keep myself from raving about it sooner! I found the three central characters, Sam, Lauren, and Joey, compelling and endearing, and was especially impressed with how Sean Dunnington uses time jumps to show us their collective and individual journeys as they find themselves and grow up. I left this play with deep and thought-provoking questions topping off the exciting story and powerful heart at its core, and I would so love to see it produced! #BAPF46

As a recent 23-year-old, I can honestly say I've never read a play -- or experienced any story, in any medium -- that captures the strangeness of being 23 as well as this one does. Madison Fiedler's characters leap off the page with distinct voices and pacing, and her theatricality is so thrilling and makes me eager to see "Screech Owl" staged. This play is unabashedly weird and awesome and asks a question that is relevant to all ages: Can you find the next version of yourself while surrounded by those who only see your past versions? #BAPF46

A fascinating play that draws you into the world of Jewish mysticism, learning about Kabbalah as the characters do in a unique and compelling way. I loved getting to read about two queer Jewish couples in one play, and I loved that the characters and their journey with exploring their spirituality felt familiar to my own Jewish journey and some of the people in it. I'm excited to see this play continue its development and to delve further into Elise Wien's work! #BAPF46