Recommended by John Busser

  • John Busser: Under Multicolored Lights by DC Cathro
    “

    12.21.24 - Holidays can be the roughest time of year for split families. With so much hurt, resentment and confusion, any happy front gets pushed to the back. Young Charlie just wants something positive in his life, and he finds a way to get it, unsafe as it is. DC Cathro captures the anger between his parents, both blaming the other for this lapse in judgement, but he allows us to identify with them, and are relieved when they come to an agreement as to how to proceed. Uplifting and hopeful.

    12.21.24 - Holidays can be the roughest time of year for split families. With so much hurt, resentment and confusion, any happy front gets pushed to the back. Young Charlie just wants something positive in his life, and he finds a way to get it, unsafe as it is. DC Cathro captures the anger between his parents, both blaming the other for this lapse in judgement, but he allows us to identify with them, and are relieved when they come to an agreement as to how to proceed. Uplifting and hopeful.

    ”
  • John Busser: Under The Mistletoe by Christopher Plumridge
    “

    12.21.24 - Oh Chris Plumridge is a naughty boy. Anyone who writes such darkly funny comedy like this can't be on the nice list. And thank God for that! Because he DID write just such a funny piece about a Santa that is making too much with the merry (and could Mommy's name BE Mary, maybe?) and a Daddy wondering if he's married to a ho-ho-hoe!

    12.21.24 - Oh Chris Plumridge is a naughty boy. Anyone who writes such darkly funny comedy like this can't be on the nice list. And thank God for that! Because he DID write just such a funny piece about a Santa that is making too much with the merry (and could Mommy's name BE Mary, maybe?) and a Daddy wondering if he's married to a ho-ho-hoe!

    ”
  • John Busser: What the Cat Dragged In by Greg Mandryk
    “

    12.21.24 - The only thing Greg Mandryk excels at more that comedy, is horror, and this short does both is equal measure. What begins as an act of kindness turns into a fight for survival, for both Jen and Lily. Well, for whatever they brought into their home too. And it was a wise decision to keep the audience (as well as the girls) in the dark as to just what it is. That just ups the creep factor a hundredfold. The audio alone is terrifying.

    12.21.24 - The only thing Greg Mandryk excels at more that comedy, is horror, and this short does both is equal measure. What begins as an act of kindness turns into a fight for survival, for both Jen and Lily. Well, for whatever they brought into their home too. And it was a wise decision to keep the audience (as well as the girls) in the dark as to just what it is. That just ups the creep factor a hundredfold. The audio alone is terrifying.

    ”
  • John Busser: In My World, an Entire Entenmann’s Cheese Danish is One Serving by Christopher Soucy
    “

    12.21.24 - Life is an accumulation of all the burdens we carry, good and bad, and we can reach a point of "no more". Debbie knows this and has decided to mark the occasion her own danish-filled way. Chris Soucy gives us an insightful look at that last straw (I too always thought of it as only the bad things. Not so anymore, thanks to this look at how heavy our load can become, even with the good. So dig in to this philosophical dessert. The only thing it'll fatten up is your satisfaction.

    12.21.24 - Life is an accumulation of all the burdens we carry, good and bad, and we can reach a point of "no more". Debbie knows this and has decided to mark the occasion her own danish-filled way. Chris Soucy gives us an insightful look at that last straw (I too always thought of it as only the bad things. Not so anymore, thanks to this look at how heavy our load can become, even with the good. So dig in to this philosophical dessert. The only thing it'll fatten up is your satisfaction.

    ”
  • John Busser: There's Nothing to See Here So Just Move Along Already! by Scott Sickles
    “

    12.21.24 - Don't be fooled. There's plenty to see here, so DON'T move along. Take in this witty, gently humorous dark comedy by Scott Sickles. We have a murder, or do we? A frayed relationship, or is it? Doctored stuffing, which frankly doesn't need it. Lots of things here look one way, but could turn out to be another, which is the beauty of this short. Nothing is obvious, and that's what keeps us intrigued. A perfect holiday gift.

    12.21.24 - Don't be fooled. There's plenty to see here, so DON'T move along. Take in this witty, gently humorous dark comedy by Scott Sickles. We have a murder, or do we? A frayed relationship, or is it? Doctored stuffing, which frankly doesn't need it. Lots of things here look one way, but could turn out to be another, which is the beauty of this short. Nothing is obvious, and that's what keeps us intrigued. A perfect holiday gift.

    ”
  • John Busser: George Santos is a Farshtunkener! by David Lipschutz
    “

    12.20.24 - I want to see this performed, preferably with the guest of dishonor in the audience (he can always send Kitara Ravache in his place if he can't make it). A solid comic gem, it's also a quick and easy primer into Jewish insults that I want to keep in my back pocket for any occasion. Thank David Lipschutz for this educational moment.

    12.20.24 - I want to see this performed, preferably with the guest of dishonor in the audience (he can always send Kitara Ravache in his place if he can't make it). A solid comic gem, it's also a quick and easy primer into Jewish insults that I want to keep in my back pocket for any occasion. Thank David Lipschutz for this educational moment.

    ”
  • John Busser: Angles in the Snow by Peter Fenton
    “

    12.20.24 - Only the laughs will add up in this comedy about math and possible death from exposure. A teacher playing a prank learns a lesson in karmic backlash thanks to Peter Fenton's darkly funny play. While obnoxious student Carolyn may have been the catalyst for this mess, Mr. Beckett fails the course with one crucial subtraction in his formula. And that subtraction provides the comic button on the matter. Fun stuff.

    12.20.24 - Only the laughs will add up in this comedy about math and possible death from exposure. A teacher playing a prank learns a lesson in karmic backlash thanks to Peter Fenton's darkly funny play. While obnoxious student Carolyn may have been the catalyst for this mess, Mr. Beckett fails the course with one crucial subtraction in his formula. And that subtraction provides the comic button on the matter. Fun stuff.

    ”
  • John Busser: GONE AWAY IS THE BLUEBIRD (10-MINUTE PLAY) by Adam Richter
    “

    12.20.24 - I got an early Christmas present this year with Adam Richter's piece showing the secret to happiness isn't having "stuff" (well, maybe SOME stuff). Boyd and Dryville (great name) are Elves on a hunt for kids on the good list when Boyd co-opts the trip to a record store to fulfill his own wish list. But the real secret Santa of this piece is the store clerk who helps out (and moves a little merchandise for him as well). I want to see the Rankin-Bass animated version of this play now.

    12.20.24 - I got an early Christmas present this year with Adam Richter's piece showing the secret to happiness isn't having "stuff" (well, maybe SOME stuff). Boyd and Dryville (great name) are Elves on a hunt for kids on the good list when Boyd co-opts the trip to a record store to fulfill his own wish list. But the real secret Santa of this piece is the store clerk who helps out (and moves a little merchandise for him as well). I want to see the Rankin-Bass animated version of this play now.

    ”
  • John Busser: Recent Impending Events by Nora Louise Syran
    “

    12.20.24 - A smartly written faith vs science meet-cute that doesn't talk down to either side. While most people would inevitably take a hard stand following one doctrine and opposing the other, here the characters listen to one another and are willing to concede points where merited. These are well rounded characters, even if they (and I'm sure, you) don't necessarily share the same views. Nora Louise Syran gives us people we wouldn't mind waking up next to on a train. Read it, you'll see.

    12.20.24 - A smartly written faith vs science meet-cute that doesn't talk down to either side. While most people would inevitably take a hard stand following one doctrine and opposing the other, here the characters listen to one another and are willing to concede points where merited. These are well rounded characters, even if they (and I'm sure, you) don't necessarily share the same views. Nora Louise Syran gives us people we wouldn't mind waking up next to on a train. Read it, you'll see.

    ”
  • John Busser: Ice in Their Veins by Aly Kantor
    “

    12.19.24 - Forget serial killers, homicidal maniacs and psychopaths: teenage girls with grudges are the truly scariest things on Earth. And never has that been portrayed in more howlingly funny fashion than Aly Kantor's scathing look at competitive ice skating and skin care. The characters are biting, the plot a sadists delight, and the jokes fly by faster than the skaters do. With jabs at social media and facial cleansers galore, there isn't one page of this script without a funny as hell line.

    12.19.24 - Forget serial killers, homicidal maniacs and psychopaths: teenage girls with grudges are the truly scariest things on Earth. And never has that been portrayed in more howlingly funny fashion than Aly Kantor's scathing look at competitive ice skating and skin care. The characters are biting, the plot a sadists delight, and the jokes fly by faster than the skaters do. With jabs at social media and facial cleansers galore, there isn't one page of this script without a funny as hell line.

    ”