Recommended by John Busser

Putting a gun control question through a funhouse mirror of a game show may sound crazy, but it doesn't come close to the absurdity Philip Kaplan displays here in this BRILLIANT satire on our obsession with guns. Kaplan hits everything he aims at and his targets are well deserved. It's just too bad the intended audience for a piece like this will be too busy out on a shooting range somewhere (or worse yet, a supermarket or park setting) taking aim at would-be imaginary transgressors.

And that, right there, is exactly what's gone off the rails in modern American education. The entitlement that people think they can afford is on full display here in this one minute, on target play by Jackie Martin. Both funny and appalling at the same time.

You can never truly know somebody's motivations, can you? What you see on the surface tells you one thing, but WHY someone acts the way they do can be a whole other ballgame. Debra Cole's smart, tragic drama gives you a terrible situation made better by the intervention of a stranger. Until, that is, you learn his true intentions. This piece is unsettling in how it plays out, and all the worse knowing how much the family will revere the man responsible for their daughter's predicament. This is chillingly effective writing.

I absolutely LOVED the twist here and I won't reveal it either so hopefully you'll either read this at my suggestion or better yet, someone will stage this and you'll get a chance to observe it yourself. And yes, I know what I did there.

One man's rejected science fiction story is another Martians treasure is the delightful premise of this fun speculative piece by Jonathan O'Neill showing two characters finding mutual success by mining the other's literature. What a cool idea. I hope nobody tries to trade it away for a Martian plumbing manual before audiences here get a chance to see it.

A young man finding out some things he always believed in are not true gets funnier and funnier as the play goes along. Like a good comedy should, the story escalates the premise, delivering bombshell after bombshell. A terrific piece of work.

I had the pleasure of seeing this play performed in a night of one act plays last night and I can say without hesitation, that this was the highlight of the night. So this morning, I looked the play up on NPX to read the script just to relive how effing funny it was. Philip Kaplan has a real winner here. A real treat for two actors getting a chance to chew the scenery as they take bites out of each other at dad's funeral. Hilarious!

Wow, there's an uncomfortable feeling running through all this and a large part is David Beardsley's knack for making these characters having a point of view that in their minds is completely understandable. No one comes across as a cardboard villain or virtuous hero. They sound like real people here. And that's what makes it uncomfortable. No one here is going to be completely pleased with the outcome. Just like in real life. I thought this was terrific.

I have to admit, as I started reading this there was a laugh line upfront that made me think this would be charming and funny (The line was about blessing Uncle Joe, I guess I never really thought of him that way). But then the monologue takes on a more, not serious, but weighty tone, that lets you know this boy knew what was in store and was prepared to do it. He just wanted a little show of support from his Heavenly Father. It's all-too-human and really endearing to the audience. This is a terrific bit of writing.

Even clowns need love too, right? Jake Lewis must love Stephen King though, as he brings in 2 of King's greatest creations (and manages to "hammer" in one more for good measure) to discuss love, life, loss and little kids in a very funny bar stool conversation showing even the most heinous of creatures get a little lonely. I'd love to see this staged, if only to see the audience get a new look at Pennywise.