Recommended by John Busser

There's two places today where magic happens on a daily basis; theater and a baseball field (at least during the season). Stephen Kaplan brings us the best of both worlds. A play about baseball and the magic that can happen. This was a charmer from page one. As a former right fielder (and bookworm in a family of athletes, including a dad who was coach), I SO connected to Tim. And like Tim, I stuck with it even though I wanted to be reading my books and watching monster movies. The magic in this play held me here. Just terrific.

I would have been disappointed if the Steve Martin in this play WASN'T the Steve Martin I know (who is not THAT Steve Martin that most of the public knows). Luckily, it wasn't THAT Steve Martin, but I must admit, I'm not entirely sure it IS the Steve Martin I know, but that's how I'm interpreting this play from Hilary Bluestein-Lyons who I also know. This delightful play has great characters mistakenly discussing the OTHER Steve Martin, until they are set straight. I wonder if the REAL Steve Martin, the one I personally know, knows about this play? Hope so.

Accountings of events are always chaotic and with a lack of details. Or perhaps the lack of details come from the shifting of perspectives. Bruce Karp captures this perfectly in bringing us the aftermath of a shooting that sounds so authentic is cannot help but touch your heart. And the added discovery of a now deceased son's orientation adds to the confusion. This is sad and touching and plays with your emotions. A tremendous bit of writing.

To give away the path this play takes would be to do it a disservice. Chris Plumridge has crafted a touching fantasy of a kind we could use more of. One that promotes connection with the past and treats it with the reverence it deserves. As the story unwinds, we get new insights into the characters which is what you want all stories to do; keep the audience engages by learning more as you go. This is terrific writing.

A fun little comedy about afterlife and death and keeping traditions in the English way. Rachel Feeny-Williams does no wrong here as a Mother and girlfriend fight it out for the attention of a son/boyfriend who's a bit shaken and stirred by his Mother's interference, seeing as it comes after her funeral. With fast paced dialogue and an offbeat plot, this one is a winner. And for an added treat, listen to it on Rachel's brand new Theatrical Shenanigans Podcast like I did!

Awwww, a meet-cute that actually lives up to its name. A gently heartwarming interaction from Hannah Lee DeFrates that would be a nice addition to a play festival. Nothing fancy or showy about it, the charm lies in its simplicity. And Penny's line at the end is a nice bow on this package.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh this one made me laugh. I should have known where it was going and being a comic book reader, I've seen these kind of -AHEM_ "team ups" before. Everybody in comic book world has SOME connection to everyone else, but never has this been funnier than here. Kryptonite isn't the only green rock-hard substance that can cause Superman pain...

I would love to see this piece performed because of all the people in the audience who will probably (no, certainly) identify with both characters here. And ironically, some won't see why they identify, but they will.
A fast, funny, farcical play that needs to be seen.

Talk about a Christmas miracle for this Godzilla fan. Lee Lawing gives us a matchup for the ages, (even if it is offstage). And he escalates the fun for the sound crew too, who will have a hoot bringing that battle to the audience. Great stuff to end my year with.

Just lovely. If only all grief could be processed this way, smoothing the transition to the next phase of life after the loss of a loved one. There is an effort here to honor the past but also look ahead. Death is messy but so is life. It's all in how we deal with the mess. Miranda Jonte gives us three characters that are all wonderfully written and able to make the idea of loss a bit easier to work with.