Recommended by Kim E. Ruyle

Steve Martin has given us a terrifying, dark psychological thriller. As the story drew me in, I was thinking, “Don’t do it. Don’t do it!” And that thought sounded with even greater urgency when the ending took an expected turn. A wonderfully compelling monologue.

This thriller is as intense as they come! The suspense keeps you on edge from the first page through the last. Compelling characters, sharp dialogue, and a plot that bristles with suspense. Brilliant!

A comical encounter – Hollywood avarice and political correctness meet up with Mickey Mouse in the briar patch. A fun read.

The angst and, at times, pure torture of adolescence comes to life in the zoom exchange between Alex and Bailey, a pair of eighth-graders who commiserate about their problems with online school, “griefers” invading video games, and green vegetables. It all rings true.

Donna Hoke’s Brilliant Works of Art is… brilliant. Clever, sensuous dialogue that explores deceit, adultery, ambition, talent, disappointment, and shame. A fiercely independent sugar baby, the complex sugar daddy, and the insecure nerd of an artist form a triangle that slaps, punches, and surprises us right up to the final curtain. Can we have it all? If so, what price are we willing to pay? And what are we risking? Bravo!

Jean Ciampi has written a sparkling gem of a comedy. When “Bob-O”, a high school teacher with the spine of a jellyfish is forced to deal with his mother’s passing, he must cope with an outlandish cast of characters and, in the process, learn that his mother was not all she seemed to be. This play has it all: well-drawn characters (Thelma and Arne, especially, are hoots), hilarious dialogue, and an engaging storyline. Will Bob-O grow a spine in the end? Check out The Bold and Bob to find out!

Ross Tedford Kendall gives us a compelling drama that plays out in a locked university conference room over a game of chess. The masterful dialogue between an aunt and her niece, lubricated with scotch from the minibar, is smart and smartly-paced, whether examining the perils of judicial activism, chess, strategy, or sexual secrets. Bravo!

A newborn can infuse a home with joy and pride and hope for the future. For Louise, a new mother, her newborn brings fatigue, upheaval, and agony. In Cyclone Dancing, Madeline Puccioni captures Louise’s torment, her sense of isolation, and feelings of helplessness. This play creates a revealing and thought-provoking picture of motherhood, fatherhood, and the support systems that are available (or not!) for new parents.

Brigid Amos has written a timely crime thriller. Don, a widowed small business owner facing financial collapse is coerced into partnership with an oily scam artist posing as an insurance adjuster. Christmas Eve, and the tension builds as Don wrestles with his choices. Stakes escalate when Holly, his daughter, arrives to interrupt the crime in progress. We're kept on edge as we wait to discover the consequences. What price Don will pay for his decision? What’s the end game for Holly? Is there a way out of this mess? And if so, what are the lessons? Bravo!

Are these neighbors what they seem? Is Troy really a young ruffian? Is Bea simply a nosy pensioner? We learn the truth through the lens of the two characters as the story unfolds and we dig for the truth.