Recommended by Tom Moran

Disturbing and hilarious in equal measure, EHISD takes the growing class divide and runs with it straight to the apocalypse. The play goes in several unexpected directions and keeps topping itself, which can be a challenge in a short piece. Well worth a read and would be a real experience to see live.

A Zoom piece that starts off as a nightmare in customer service (or lack of same) and unexpectedly morphs into something much more personal and profound. It's a well-crafted reminder that even seemingly banal conversations with strangers (often the very stuff of Zoom) have life-changing significance lurking beneath the surface, if we plumb for it.

An offbeat cross between a nightmare and a slice-of-life vignette. To its eternal credit, the play offers neither predictable twists or easy answers, leaving the reader with an unresolved sense of dread. Kudos to Triplett for his restraint.

You wouldn't expect a 10-minute piece about a Jewish space laser to plumb the depths of the semitic soul, but Blevins takes that route here, and does it well too. She takes an absurd premise and treats it with a winning mixture of humor and gravitas, all leading up to a cliffhanger ending. What a fun read.

I just heard this on the "Stories Found" podcast and enjoyed the heck out of it. It's an absurd, silly, very fun piece well-suited to the audio format, as its zombie combat sequences (not to mention makeup) would be a bear to actually stage. The script also gives some actors a chance to really ham it up. Definitely worth a listen.

A wonderful bit of absurdity that keeps topping itself. Laced throughout with funny twists and some truly great one-liners ("Look, ma'am, it's your word against Satan's"), it's a joy to read. Also plays itself out nicely with a stellar last few moments.

A clever, witty, brisk two-hander (or rather one-hander with a voice-over) about two down-on-their-luck bros who forge a connection under the most unlikely of circumstances. Nicely drawn and believable characters, crisp dialogue and well-plotted escalation make this a fun read (and no doubt performance) from start to finish.

A fully-thought-provoking, totally on-the-nose satire, Billionaire Mindset succeeds in every possible way. Crackling dialogue, memorable characters that manage to be both individuals and types, and a satisfying and inevitable plot arc make this one satisfying throughout. Well-deserving of its Samuel French nod.

What a great vignette! Two memorable characters, a strong setup, tons of great laugh lines, and escalating circumstances make this a pleasure to read. I expect a couple of actresses with good comic timing could really knock this out of the park.

I was sad to miss this at the Valdez Theatre Conference and glad to find it here instead. What a solid, affecting, nuanced play. The characters are all relatable and believable, the situation is expertly crafted, and the naturalistic language is wonderful, from the therapy jargon through the expertly placed pauses and interruptions. What these characters go through is all terribly real, and all really terrible.