Recommended by John Busser

  • John Busser: Erstwhile by Georgia Xanthopoulou
    “

    02.16.26 - Just beautifully evocative. I reread this twice just for some of the phrasings alone. I loved "In our realm, you do not learn that you are dead You learn to live with your own weight" So simple but says so much. Persephone may be a consort in the underworld, but her character soars here on the page.

    02.16.26 - Just beautifully evocative. I reread this twice just for some of the phrasings alone. I loved "In our realm, you do not learn that you are dead You learn to live with your own weight" So simple but says so much. Persephone may be a consort in the underworld, but her character soars here on the page.

    ”
  • John Busser: Erstwhile (short) by David Hilder
    “

    02.16.26 - The most striking part of this play is the language employed by David Hilder for his two characters. At a time when people had a more eloquent way of speaking, even in the most trying of times (and for Theo, it is). We watch an adversarial relationship that somehow came together in an unexpected way lead to the downfall of one of them, and we can't help but be saddened as we watch it crumble. This is a terrific short play.

    02.16.26 - The most striking part of this play is the language employed by David Hilder for his two characters. At a time when people had a more eloquent way of speaking, even in the most trying of times (and for Theo, it is). We watch an adversarial relationship that somehow came together in an unexpected way lead to the downfall of one of them, and we can't help but be saddened as we watch it crumble. This is a terrific short play.

    ”
  • John Busser: Erstwhile: Prison edition by Christopher Soucy
    “

    02.16.26 - Food for thought from a character that actually realizes the consequences of his actions. Chris Soucy has written a surprisingly poignant inner monologue from a man who knows what he did, is prepared to "pay the bill" and wonders if, even if he does, will he be ready to fact a future where he is no longer the man he was before. Well done.

    02.16.26 - Food for thought from a character that actually realizes the consequences of his actions. Chris Soucy has written a surprisingly poignant inner monologue from a man who knows what he did, is prepared to "pay the bill" and wonders if, even if he does, will he be ready to fact a future where he is no longer the man he was before. Well done.

    ”
  • John Busser: Special Ingredient by Christopher Soucy
    “

    02.16.26 - Absolutely hysterical. I love these kinds of comedies and Chris Soucy knows exactly how to write escalation in a plot. This play should be performed by someone every damn day. We'd be a lot happier as a species.

    02.16.26 - Absolutely hysterical. I love these kinds of comedies and Chris Soucy knows exactly how to write escalation in a plot. This play should be performed by someone every damn day. We'd be a lot happier as a species.

    ”
  • John Busser: Dead Mice and Banana Peels by Christopher Soucy
    “

    02.15.26 - Now THIS made me laugh. Don't we ALL feel the way Hoppo does some days? Ya just gotta vent. And Chris Soucy let him vent in the most circus-like of circumstances since, well, since the circus shut down. Hoppo, I salute you.

    02.15.26 - Now THIS made me laugh. Don't we ALL feel the way Hoppo does some days? Ya just gotta vent. And Chris Soucy let him vent in the most circus-like of circumstances since, well, since the circus shut down. Hoppo, I salute you.

    ”
  • John Busser: The Monster Under The Bed Script by Lou Jones
    “

    02.15.26 - Oh Lou Jones had me going. I thought I knew where this would be heading, AND THEN, the real monster revealed itself and it all went to hell. This was terrific.

    02.15.26 - Oh Lou Jones had me going. I thought I knew where this would be heading, AND THEN, the real monster revealed itself and it all went to hell. This was terrific.

    ”
  • John Busser: Gawkers by Dana Hall
    “

    02.15.26 - It's ironic that an unwanted drive we all have, to find and diminish those different than ourselves, is such a universal trait. Dana Hall gives us a mother who loves her son unequivocally, endures the pain of this exclusionary society on his behalf even as she hopes he himself misses that. This was beautifully told, heart-breaking in it's implication that we could all use a bit of empathetic upgrading.

    02.15.26 - It's ironic that an unwanted drive we all have, to find and diminish those different than ourselves, is such a universal trait. Dana Hall gives us a mother who loves her son unequivocally, endures the pain of this exclusionary society on his behalf even as she hopes he himself misses that. This was beautifully told, heart-breaking in it's implication that we could all use a bit of empathetic upgrading.

    ”
  • John Busser: THAT KIND OF BOY [A 1-MINUTE PLAY] by Steven G. Martin
    “

    02.15.26 - This kind of one minute play just does everything right. It subverts your expectations beautifully and ends on the absolute best note. Perfect.

    02.15.26 - This kind of one minute play just does everything right. It subverts your expectations beautifully and ends on the absolute best note. Perfect.

    ”
  • John Busser: Eleven Minutes After Midnight by Sam Heyman
    “

    02.10.26 - a radio play works best when the dialogue allows the listener to create the landscape being painted in their mind, and this play by Sam Heyman succeeds admirably. What also succeeds is Sam's ability to make the spectacle of a World Wide war against alien invaders take a back seat to the very real human drama revolving around protagonist Ed's failure to fully protect a loved one. Audiences may love the bombastic, but they respond more fully when the stakes are brought to a human level.

    02.10.26 - a radio play works best when the dialogue allows the listener to create the landscape being painted in their mind, and this play by Sam Heyman succeeds admirably. What also succeeds is Sam's ability to make the spectacle of a World Wide war against alien invaders take a back seat to the very real human drama revolving around protagonist Ed's failure to fully protect a loved one. Audiences may love the bombastic, but they respond more fully when the stakes are brought to a human level.

    ”
  • John Busser: As You Like it or Shakespeare Orders a Hamburger by Josh Gauthier
    “

    02.10.26 - Now this is my idea of a happy meal. I loved the interaction between Rufus and Shakespeare and a lot of the references peppered throughout. He had me rooting for Rufus to start living life by his terms even as WS ordered a meal that would give him a Coriolanus (sorry, a coronary). What, he couldn't order a Julius Caesar salad?

    02.10.26 - Now this is my idea of a happy meal. I loved the interaction between Rufus and Shakespeare and a lot of the references peppered throughout. He had me rooting for Rufus to start living life by his terms even as WS ordered a meal that would give him a Coriolanus (sorry, a coronary). What, he couldn't order a Julius Caesar salad?

    ”