Recommended by Adam Richter

Sometimes moving away is not enough to add distance to the end of a relationship. In "Last Exit," Philip Middleton Williams gives us two characters whose breakup is in the past but their baggage is still very much in the present (and omnipresent, for that matter). I loved the way that in a few short pages, Williams gives us years — decades? — of the characters' lives, Each reminiscence, each quip leaves the audience and characters wondering, "Where will they go from here?" — right up to the final line. This is a brilliant relationship drama. Well done!

"Sugarplum" is a superb play that finds the most harrowing way to ask the question: How do we know what is real? Furthermore, is that even preferable to the nightmare that the protagonist has to live through? The staging of this is so terrifying and engrossing that it would be wonderful to see on stage. Great job!

A heartbreaking yet strangely hopeful play about two lovers whose relationship can not survive, a fate unrelated to the catastrophe unfolding around them. Scott Sickles grounds this story of a human and a mythical creature in the unfortunately real world of a planet undergoing a climate crisis. The stakes are life-and-death, but even by the play's last page he gives a glimmer of hope that the lovers' breakup isn't the end of the world. Manmade climate change is.

I don't know if this is true for most 1-minute plays, but "MIRACLE..." would be a lighting designer's dream. This short play shows us the awe-inspiring wonder of the natural world, made more brilliant by Simone's nearly intractable resistance to it. Nearly.
Steve Martin, once again, packs his 1-minute play with so much depth and heart that you're amazed (and a little saddened) that it only lasts one minute.

The mythos of childhood fantasy characters is — complicated. Emily McClain skewers it brilliantly, focusing on the one that, frankly, has the lowest financial requirement for parents. The Tooth Fairy is upset that her rating fell because of one bad review, even though she outsources her labor to parents. She, like most of us, puts too much stock in her branding and online reputation. Unlike most of us, she has a plan to get her ratings up.
Don't get in her way.

"The Velveteen Rabbit Part II" this ain't. Or maybe it is. A lot happens between the age when stuffed animals are everything to us and when we inch closer to the Social Security set. Lee R. Lawing's short comedy is a funny and completely unsentimental reunion between an old woman and her childhood bunny. The rapport these characters have — to say nothing of the costuming! — would make this a delight to see on stage. Bravo!

Donald Rumsfeld, who lied to start a war, who endorsed the torture of civilians, who ignored the needs of U.S. troops after he put them in harms way, and who bought the home of the man who tortured Frederick Douglas, never got his comeuppance in life. So it falls to Dominica Plummer to give us some semblance of justice and she does so brilliantly in this short and powerful morality play. I hope to see it live on stage, and I hope the final moment can be staged. Brilliant!

Sometimes the point of going to a gallery is to appreciate good art, and sometimes it's to BE SEEN appreciating good art. There's a vast chasm between the two, and Steve Martin brilliantly gives us both experiences in this rich and delightful short play. The dialogue in the beginning is sharp and funny, and the payoff at the end is — well, it's a work of art.
Bravo!

A lovely 1-minute play that captures the chaos, tragedy and beauty of life in dozens (!!) of interconnected lives. This was a joy to read.

Reading this play, I was as eager as Vee to find out the owner of the item in the small box. What really kept me hooked was her own journey and the way that her big discovery changed her. This is a witty and touching play that would be great to see live.