Recommended by John Busser

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.

If all the world's a stage, then no one is safe from the Olive's of the world. And that's okay. A delightful character who lives a life in fear and denial that she might be called upon to present to the world, Olive comes to vivid life along with theater-goer Nic who just wants to watch. These two are a hoot and a half and a (REAL) audience will delight in watching them. I'd love to see this actually staged in the middle of an audience just to give it extra verisimilitude. Kevin B has a winner here.

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.