Recommended by John Busser

There's an honesty here that portrays the participants as real people and not idealized avatars for the audience. I think they would prefer this, real people who have flaws and reactions that show their insecurities. As we get older our sense of self worth can take a daily beating, and though well-intentioned, the reaction of loved ones can sometimes exacerbate the issue. It's not fair and it's not anyone's fault, but it is truly human to react badly to it. Luckily, Paul Donnelly lets some light in at the end and gives us a warm resolution to the play.

I don't know why, but I think the thing I love most here is the fact that Kellogg's sponsored a civilian trip to the moon (maybe it's the hard "K" sound, a staple of good comedy!) This is the kind of play that puts a goofy grin on your face for the duration of it. I certainly was smiling while reading it. It's fanciful, imaginative, and whimsical. And that last line made my laugh out loud. This is a winner.

I think my favorite line from Jacquie Floyd's hilarious Love Shackles is "...we watched “Con Air” and ate cold pizza on Valentine’s Day." (Of course, I took my current girlfriend to "The Expendables" on our first date, so what do I know?) Jacquie never disappoints with her engaging characters and here we find a desperate Mark, caught cheating and cuffed to a chair by his much smarter and rightfully vengeful Rose, as she toys with him. This Rose has some thorns, and Mark is the one getting pricked. Great stuff.

I love the circular logic and whip-smart dialogue in this comic satire. It PERFECTLY encapsulates the angst of modern day social interaction and our desire to be both involved and distanced from other people. Matthew Moore has hit on something here though. It's not just jokes for jokes sake. This play has a point to make, and it makes it well. The lines are almost 30's screwball-comedy in tone and delivery which endears it even more. I would love to see this staged.

A few particular lines in this play really stuck out to me. Amelia tells the audience "You’re fixated on that day I disappeared over the Pacific. One day! I prefer to focus on my 14,578 days before that." And that's so true. We are more than just one moment. And as Arianna Rose shows us, even in death, Amelia (and Eleanor) prefer to go on living and having new experiences. A moment can define us, but we don't have to stop looking for other moments. I REALLY liked this play.

I thought I knew where this was going and I absolutely did not. Once the truth was revealed, the relationship between the two characters reached in and connected in a way that they seemed to before, but proved to be superficial. The deeper connection happened because the truth came out. As it should. This is a wonderful play showing how our surface interactions may be polite and nice, but true connection takes a deep dive into sometimes troubling waters. And it's worth it, every time. Terrific stuff.

What great roles for older actresses! They'll have a field day with Jacquie Floyd-Priskorn's short play dealing with a trio of gossipy senior citizens awaiting a fourth and having a grand old time dishing the dirt and good friends often do. The barbs fly fast, the dialogue zings along and the addition of the hard-of-hearing Earl comes into play at just the right moments. Normally, Jacquie's work is peppered in the fantastical, but here, this very down-to-earth interaction is just... fantastic.

I was moved by the deft handling of the interaction between the two characters in this play, treading a line between acknowledging ones grief over a life's end with trying to establish a connection to possibly start a new relationship. It never comes across as phony or gimmicky. These two are just naturally helping each other and by extension, themselves, by the simple act of communicating. This play is so touching. I'd love to see it staged.

What an interesting take on how possible outside influences can have on the development of a person. Traits that seem to come from within may all be "seeds" planted by an (up till now) unseen source. This is definitely an intriguing way to look at pregnancy, and John Kelly gives us three distinct characters to explore it. Fun but with unexpected depth.

If only it were that easy to look like you're working hard. What am I saying? Of course it's that easy. Brian Cern gives us two characters, one who makes a living, the other who FAKES a living. And of the two, we kinda like the faker. It's amazing how we like to live vicariously through the adventures of others. And honestly, I think if we found out it's all make-believe, we'd probably applaud the imagination of the faker. This is truer than you know. Or would probably believe.