Recommended by John Busser

I love the "meta-ness" of it. Playwright characters writing dystopian plays during a dystopia. J. Chavez hits all the right notes too, including the Lesbian love story (or porn story, depending how far the playwright would have gotten before being interrupted). There's plenty of inside-baseball type humor here for us playwrights, but an audience force fed one goddamn dystopian play after another will spot all the tropes as well. Well done.

It astonishes me to think that there are people in this world to whom this play would represent a documentary, and not a dark AF satire on the 2nd Amendment zombies who believe in their hearts that the only bad guns are the unfired ones. Brian Cern actually hits the bullseye here with his fictional family more interested in making daughter a martyr (And my God, is that not the saddest thing you've ever heard?) in order to preserve their God-given right to Make America Great Again over her dead body. Scathing and necessary at the same time.

Wow! Just... wow. What an emotional wringer Chris Lockheardt puts the audience through. 2 damaged people playing two very different, but equally disturbing games with each other. The shift in the power dynamics goes both ways, and I honestly wondered, where was this going to go? And in whose favor? An audience is sure to be kept guessing right up until the end, and even then, you have to wonder if there are any real winners here. Yeas... the audience.

Work never stops, not for the everyday schlub with rent to pay, not for the mindless horde currently on the hunt for fresh meat. Greg Mandryk never disappoints, giving us a twisted, darkly funny take with this zombie apocalypse meets the Office short play. For some, the pursuit of the almighty dollar trumps pursuit of the brain. But considering the thinking ability of some of Greg's characters, these zombies might not need to take a lunch hour. Freaking funny stuff!

Part of being an audience member means you can sit back, relax, and enjoy the cringe. Bob LeBlanc has got your back. While the meet-cute (or meet-"Acute" - it's a weird triangle) of Brittany's current groom to be didn't exactly take the normal route to get there, she DID commit to tying the knot. Until, that is, she gets cold feet. Then she desperately needs help and our other character in this play, Mary, needs to help untie things. With humor, insight and some hard truths, Mary gets the job done. A wonderful two-hander.

I don't know who drank more cough syrup, the writers of this hysterically funny satire on American politics, or me before I read it. But there's something almost magical (read that: Fever-Dreamish) about watching the fictional (but sounding completely like the orange-hued idiot we all know) Papa Ubu as he stumbles, mumbles and bumbles his way through his dumb machinations. The audience will either be shell-shocked, horrified, bemused or in need of therapy after seeing this (You know, just like in real life). I laughed my ass off a number of times but only because it's funnier than crying. Bravo.

I was intrigued from the get-go. Iyna Caruso knows how to string an audience along. I'd not realized this was loosely based on true events, and whatever those events were, I think I like this version better. Staging multiple quick-paced scenes like chapters in some dime novel, the play moves breezily along until we get our guilty party... who turns out to be not so guilty. But boy, is he having fun anyway. As will an audience.

The kind of TLC Charlie receives is one I won't spoil. Suffice to say, he won't have much time to appreciate the lengths Teresa went to provide it. With deft skill, Rachel Feeny-Williams sets up a possible romantic get together with a long ago crush only to learn he sees things differently in memory than some others. The tension is palpable and the mystery deepens until just the right moment for everything to come crashing down on Charlie. Or maybe Charlie crashed down. Read it and see for yourself. Or better yet, produce it and watch.

A terrific monologue for a character actor to chew on. Martha Garvey brings Sully to life in spectacular fashion, this "talking" cat has a story to tell and won't be deterred. It sounds like Sully has been auditioning for more than just this reality show, as his hard life on the streets has prepared him for the ultimate audition; to be taken in and loved by "the Lady". Short, sweet and perfect for any short play festival. (I was going to say "puuuurfect" but I thought better of it)

There are no atheists in foxholes or public transport it seems. And when he wants to, God can be a real ***hole when it comes to answering your prayers. Jonny Bolduc shows just how much of one when he has God actually answer a mortal in need of a divine plug with a resounding raspberry (so to speak). Could have just ignored it, but He didn't. And we get a funny play out of it.