Recommended by Adam Richter

What I loved most about this terrific short play — besides the PTSD of having seen (and performed) badly executed improv — is the fact that through all the inspired comedy and well-earned laugh (of which there are legion) is a genuine mystery that the detectives solve through the most unconventional means. John Busser's script is not only a brilliantly funny comedy; it's also a corker of a whodunnit.

"Coronation" is my new favorite high-school comedy. (Sorry, Ferris.) Peter Fenton weaves a complex tale of politics, gossip and teen drama that hits all the right notes while at the same time giving the audience something completely unexpected.
What I loved most about it is how Fenton sets up familiar character tropes then shatters them, one by one, giving us an original story that feels more true to life than almost anything Hollywood has done since the '80s.

A creepy, unsettling play with a terrific payoff. I loved it and will go to sleep with earplugs from now on.

[2025-05-21]
Some playwrights believe that the characters cease to exist once the play ends. Bobby is more persistent than that. After Donny types "The End," it's just the beginning of his showdown with a main character who's been in Donny's head most of his life. Or has he? "Goodbye, Bobby" is a funny and thoughtful look at the inner lives of fictional characters and the writers who create them. This was a joy to read, and the button had me laughing out loud.

[2025-05-20]

I for one, vote for Morgan as High Prince of Nowhweresville. Tom Erb's delightful monologue is a richly detailed character study and a fun playground of ideas for an actor. What a fun piece!

[2025-05-20]
In DC Cathro's heartbreaking short piece, the interplay between Brady and Shelly begins as playful but turns dark so quickly and subtly that the tragic ending is both unexpected and completely natural. This is a powerful piece about a relationship in decline, and would be a feast for actors and audiences — not to mention prop masters.

[2025-05-20] "I, Voyager 1" is a moving and profound monologue about purpose and isolation. In reading Steve Martin's piece, I was transported back to a time in our nation's history when space exploration was about discovery, not whether we could pollute some rock with more humans. The Voyager space probes were a marvel of human ingenuity, and this monologue is a lovely tribute to them.

[2025-05-18] I'm a sucker (get it? vampire play? Nevermind.) for plays that twist familiar stories into new shapes. Sam Heyman brings new life to the vampire myth with this queer love triangle that presents the creatures as much more sympathetic than they've been portrayed in the past. Sam has a gift for writing plays with more subtle conflict than the binary good-vs.-evil, and in "Literally Forever," the sympathies are always in flux. That dynamic, and the fantastic story, make this a delight.

What do you do when the success that eluded you your entire career makes an unexpected visit? Philip Middleton Williams explores this question in "Revival," giving us a layered and thoughtful drama in the process. Scott is understandably bitter,Deke is understandably desperate and Marvin displays the right amount of hustle with none of the sleaze, making him the ideal agent. The tennis match of these three men going after what they want without ever admitting it to themselves is brilliant.

"3/5's of a Man" is a searing, lyrical and necessary monologue for our times. Make that all time. Mark V. Jones reaches back to before the founding of our republic to tap into the source of his character's trauma. By doing so, he exposes our collective trauma, and collective guilt. The words burn and sing with a message that we all must hear.