Recommended by Adam Richter

  • Cabana Boy
    11 Mar. 2023
    "Cabana Boy" seems like it should be longer. I don't mean that anything is missing, because it isn't, or that Philip Middleton Williams gives his characters short shrift, because he doesn't.

    I mean that after reading this beautifully written, moving coming-of-age play, I couldn't believe that it was only 60 pages long.

    He built an entire universe, gave us four sympathetic and emotionally complex characters and gave them a tight, well-paced story of love, first times and longing that is painfully beautiful.

    Brilliant work, as always. I would love to see this on stage. Bravo!
  • LADY M'S CHRISTMAS
    4 Mar. 2023
    Before there was Marley's Ghost there was ... Banquo?
    In this hilarious comedy, Monica Cross gives Macbeth and Lady Macbeth the holiday treatment they never had but probably deserved. "Lady M's Christmas" is chock-full of Shakespeare references and a nod to that other male English author but is still very much a standalone play that more than holds its own in the holiday canon. Bravo!
  • Time Between
    4 Mar. 2023
    What happens after we die is all speculation, but Christopher Soucy's "Time Between," a lovely, rich two-hander, lays out one of the best possible scenarios. This play would be a treat to see on stage, and give audiences a lot to think about. Well done!
  • Frozen: A Monologue
    3 Mar. 2023
    We all wish we had more time, but Debra Cole's "Frozen" is the most realistic answer to that wish. Insightful, clever and rich in characterization, this monologue would be terrific for any actor. Bravo!
  • Appetizers, or "On an Island Somewhere"
    3 Mar. 2023
    The march to fascism ends with the scenario Scott Sickles so vividly lays before the audience in this horror play. In a dystopian future where gays are sent to "camps" for conversion, two couples try to navigate the precarious waters as they see how much they can trust each other.
    This play is heartbreaking and angrifying, an alchemy that only Scott can accomplish.
  • The Judas Goat
    2 Mar. 2023
    Emotionally devastating and laugh-out-loud funny: That's how Emily McClain rolls with her satire, and "The Judas Goat" is no exception. A terrific exploration of why we allow terrible systems to persist as well as a potent warning about the dangers of nicotine addiction.
    Absolutely brilliant.
  • I Am He
    2 Mar. 2023
    There is nothing I fear more as a parent than the prospect of losing my kid. "I Am He" is a devastating yet poignant look at that fear, executed with a breezy, naturalistic setup and a surprising climax. This is a tender exploration of grief that would move audiences to tears, as it did me. Well done.
  • A Playwright Asks... "What's Next?" PART ONE
    28 Feb. 2023
    Sam Heyman's "A Playwright Asks" series are touching, affirming paeans to this craft into which so many otherwise reasonable people have thrown themselves. "What's Next?" is a meditation on what happens after you just finished a creative marathon and your energy is depleted. If you are as lucky as the titular playwright, you have encouraging voices inside and outside your head who tell you to keep going and, more importantly, when it's OK to take a breather.
    Great tribute to all of those who create. Bravo!
  • None Time
    28 Feb. 2023
    Rachel Feeny-Williams' "None Time" is a lovely ode to the lost art of doing nothing. A great two-hander that will warm the hearts of theater-goers and have them craving their own "none time."

    As is her wont, Feeny-Williams made the most of the 28 Plays Later challenge prompt and gave us something unexpected and brilliant. Bravo!
  • Made by Thumb
    28 Feb. 2023
    It was the curtain call that did me in.
    Once again, Scott Sickles proves he has more talent in his two thumbs than most of us have in our entire bodies. "Made By Thumb" is a silly, on-target spoof of disaster films, English period dramas, comedies of manners and meta-plays. I giggled at each line, sometimes descending into outright chortling. This play would be a hoot for actors and audiences, and a pip for costume designers. I loved it.

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