Recommended by John Busser

Who hasn't, at least once in their life, had this exact scenario play out in their house? Paul Smith has his finger on our pulse with this one. I knew where it was going and I STILL laughed at the punchline of this nostalgic look back at all of out childhoods. Thanks for the warm remembrance, Paul.

The comic payoff here is worth the price of admission. This would be an awesome trio of parts for any actors having to weave through this hilarious 5 minutes to curtain meltdown. And the twist Robert adds to the end is just perfect. Amber Dickinson has written a winner here.

Oh is Melinda a breath of fresh air in this play! I loved the character here even as I was frustrated (and yes, I think you're supposed to be) with Robin. Robin has already resigned herself to the grave in all ways here. Her life seems to be living on the sidelines, while Melinda is ready to be back in the game! And I applaud her for it. Steve Martin writes the best characters in that they bring out an emotional response in us, the audience. That's what good writing does.

All you homeowners with just a little bit of yard and some trees will know the pain of Dog-Man here. In what is surely a never-ending battle, this monologue by Amber Dickinson hilariously calls out those little nut-gathering bastards and puts them on notice. I think any actor would have a blast getting their paws on this one.

In all things, politeness must be observed. To do anything less would be... uncivilized. Rachel Feeny-Williams understands this, and so should you. Especially during the beatings. This was a zany look at Mafiosa culture and protocol and you would be remiss to not partake of it's delights. The characters are wonderfully appropriate, the names alone are icing on the cake, and you can practically hear the mandolin music playing (at a respectable volume, of course) while the play unfolds.

This is romantic comedy done right. Not with outlandish circumstances or a faux third party thrown in to add sexual tension (although maybe the body pillow fits), but with real sounding characters having a disagreement about the meaning and context of their surroundings. These characters feel like real people, thanks to Rachael Carnes' sharp dialogue. These are folks you either already know, or want to get to know. Terrific stuff.

I HIGHLY recommend this demented comedy of manners, final girl unions and tea breaks amongst the carnage from Chris Soucy. I loved every minute of this. It's clever, gruesome and sick in all the best ways. In the best tradition of slasher flicks, I'd love to see a sequel or even a series of sequels, ending with Slasher's Delight... IN SPAAAAACE!

Now I'm hungry for ramen...
Morey Norkin gives us a true fractured fairy tale here that is delightfully bonkers. I always get a kick out of characters who interact, and in this case, sometimes contradict a narrator's best efforts. Kids and adults can sink their teeth into this comic retelling of Goldilocks and I think it would be a worthy addition to any short play festival.

Oh I couldn't wait to dig into another Jacquie Floyd comedy and she did NOT disappoint. You should all sacrifice about 10 minutes of your time to read this hilarious look at human sacrifice (and yes, you CAN make that funny). It's not all fun and deity-pleasing. Someone could get hurt. Or eaten. And then where would we be? Probably laughing our asses off like I did reading this. I think this play would be even better staged, as the tech crew would be having a blast bringing the mayhem to life. Thanks for the great read, Jacquie!

I know I'll never write something which addresses our collective soul while at the same time does so in a way that confounds and calls out the absurd in that same soul. But thank God Rachael Carnes can and did. Between supermarket tzatziki, Pompeii crosswords and tight hedgehog balls (believe me, it all makes a weird kind of sense in the context of the play), Rachael makes this a damn fine source of existential entertainment.