Recommended by Asher Wyndham

I remember how much I enjoyed reading this play...it was during the first few years learning the craft of playwriting. But you don't want to read about this play's influence on my playwriting. I think this play would be perfect not just for a theater interested in contemporary drama; it's perfect for colleges, especially those involved in the American College Theater Festival. It's a winning script: it's an imaginative rift on Chekhov's Three Sisters, it's perfect for a trio of female actors, and it's intelligent. Memorable odd characters that will entertain your audience from beginning to end.

This playwright knows how to structure a ten-minute play. I would be interested in seeing these characters in a longer work. What makes this play powerful is that I struggle throughout the play, figuring out who to side with. I understand hot-headed Rebecca's arguments and sometimes (and I feel bad) agree with her...which makes me question my response to the poor... Yes, you could say that Rebecca is the antagonist, but she's the most dynamic/aggressive character -- it's about her and her response to poverty in America. A thought-provoking political play.

This short play is perfect for a theater interested in environmental themes or a theater that wants to produce something for a fringe showcase. The story-concept, the characters, the act of drawing and the dialog are memorable. Lucy's voice -- distinct, fresh, passionate -- will keep you engaged. She's...WOW. Her belief in the power of drawing and her hope that she can prevent Minnesota wilderness from turning into Nebraska --as well as her desire to please her grandfather -- is beautiful and brave. Some beautiful images: fairy-loving ash trees, evil worms, forest giant. READ THIS PLAY!

The family members are kind of like archaeologists, digging up the past, revealing secrets and desires. A gripping mystery about our responsibility to the past with several haunting images/revelations. Some dynamic roles for women (esp. Becky).

If your theater is interested in presenting an evening of short plays on gun control or current political issues, then choose Robert's Gun Play. An intelligent short play on gun control, presenting the arguments for and against. Robert captures perfectly the voice and idiocy of Right-wingers that are anti-gun-control, and in doing so teaches Lefties, liberal readers/audience members, how to understand the opposition and win an argument--every time. Thank-you.

There are several moments in this play that make you think...and say Yes that's true...about human beings, especially strangers, and (possibly) yourself. There's a woman who feels alive when she crashes funerals; and a man who feels he truly connected with a stranger at a gym. The play made me realize that sometimes you feel alive/human when you make a connection with a stranger. These two characters are beautiful and brave. Poetic, beautiful, honest writing.

A short serio-comedy about karma, with an unexpected surprise, intense and brutal, during the showdown. This play, along with his other short, Benchmarks, showcases the playwright's keen insight into relationships and life itself.

A short play big on ideas -- and those kinds of plays are rare. This play addresses how it's hard to let go of our past (our baggage full of artifacts) and seize the future (the bus).

A compelling play about how people stay connected after a tragedy. It does address a specific event, the 2011 earthquake/tsunami near Japan, but it speaks for all of us, reminding us that our humanity is noticeable in how we connect during and after a tragedy. I can't recall any play that has created such a theatrical spectacle from various technology -- YouTube videos, Skype, texting. If you know of a media designer that wants a challenge, have him or her read this play. If you're a playwright wanting to add technology into a script, you'll find inspiration in this play.

A great play for community colleges and universities or theatres that want to produce a historical drama that is not written by Shakespeare and his contemporaries. A captivating continuation of the Shylock story that is both comedic and tragic, with lines that capture the grandiose personality of each character. Great parts for actresses (esp. Gessica) and actors (esp. Shylock and the hilarious Capitano and Launcelot). The playwright's knowledge of the period, the alliterative power of the poetry, the rhetorical strategizing, the spectacle, the largeness of the world on the page and (hopefully) the stage is...breathtaking.