Recommended by John Busser

Hilariously on point, Brenton Kniess knows the pain of the submission process. As do we all. In fact, I JUST completed a reformatting of a play to fit an opportunity only to find out I missed ONE thing that completely disqualifies it. ARRRGH! I needed some laughs to go with my pain, and this provided it in spades. It may be parody, but it speaks truth. And reminds me I should keep euros on hand. Funny stuff.

Oh that damned submission fee! It's all that stands between changing the world and changing an artistic directors mind. Brian Cern hits a very sensitive nail on the head here. As submission fees just to get someone to take a peek at a script become more and more commonplace, that nail is just another in the coffin of artistic integrity. Sam and Alex (a nice take on the gender neutral names for maximum inclusivity) are friends, but only as long as that fee gets paid. Satire, yes, but sadly true these days. A script that SHOULD be seen. Got $20?

Surprisingly moving, this piece by Elizabeth Dudak is both tragic yet life affirming as we meet a woman, Marla, having a final talk to two very important parts of her identity on the eve of their departure. At times nostalgic, awkward, warmly remembered and clinically sobering, we also hear from the soon-to-be-departed breasts of Marla's as she says goodbye. And we get the viewpoint from marla's inner anxiety as well. All these voices give us a perspective we are normally denied in real life. A wonderful and thought-provoking play.

I'm a sucker for time travel stories and this is no exception. Most times, we come into these stories when the characters are just beginning their journay through time. Here, we are thrown into the mess made of time due to Will already having messed things up badly, and now, he and Sean are scrambling to put things right. But like an ever-branching river, it becomes harder and harder to work back up to the original tributary. You become emotionally invested in these two as you hope against hope they can put time back together again. Riveting stuff.

Asher Wyndham has not only raised the bar on obnoxious character monologues, he brings down the house with this funny AF cringefest of all the worst traits of the common North American theatergoer. From the oblivious non-stop talking to the crunching of food, acting as if the central character here was in his own home as he invades the audience's territory, Wyndham doesn't miss a trick here. And the monologue is still so infuriatingly entertaining, that we can't help but be drawn into his circle of unaware rudeness. Great fun.

I didn't know whether to laugh or scream in anger, but since the cause is in this hilarious play by Joe Swenson, I laughed long and hard. Watching Mary Beth absolutely torment poor Peter got funnier with each line. I would bet any audience member watching this play would certainly identify with Peter's dilemma. His solution was novel, just as ludicrous as her handling of things and the perfect topper to this piece. Who needs anger management when you've got faster dolphins (it makes sense in context, believe me)?

If you haven't read Cue yet, you're missing a sure-fire winning comedy by Kate Danley! I liked it so much I'm giving it a second read and recommendation. If you're an actor, this will surely resonate with you as we've ALL had this happen at one time or another. John and Mary tap dance around the late-to-the-stage Tom in ever more hilarious ways. Tom continues to be a bigger source of laughs OFFstage than he probably would be on. Produce this play somewhere near me so I can see it in all it's glory.

With characters like these three aspects of the devil, you'd think this would be a much darker piece, but it's surprisingly light and sort of fun. Getting together at a reunion, we see Beezy, Luce and Stan reminisce about better (or is it worse?) times, and with the nostalgia that brings up, we also get some contemplation on where to go from here. Here, Stan wants to pursue a lighter path. I don't know about you, but I was rooting for Stan to walk that path. Nostalgia can be fun, but forging a new way has its benefits as well.

A short and sweet strike that is (pun definitely intended) right up my alley. Vivian Lermond has penned a winner here as we see a woman inadvertently try to pull off a 7-10 split when she goes for two bowlers from the same team. But some balls never roll that way and we see there's no splitting these good buddies.

I laughed numerous times reading this piece by Liz Duffy Adams and I think you will too. Any playwrights out there NOT see themselves in Bill's shoes, even if only for a moment. The satire runs freely here, with the "serious" talkbackers expounding on everything wrong with the play, even as they attempt to dumb it down for the masses. Bill's decision at the end is sweet, even as it is followed by a parting shot of absurdity. I would love for an audience to have a real talkback after seeing this. I loved this.