Recommended by Toby Malone

Living so far away, the California wildfires felt like an abstraction, something on the news that was happening somewhere else. This tightly-packed drama brings this reality right to the forefront, so much so that you can almost smell the smoke and breathe the choking oppression of a world in which the world burns and there's no escape because of the raging COVID restrictions. Amidst all of this, Emily Russell creates a human, impactful story of survival and hope, and even though we know now that San Francisco wasn't engulfed, it remains just as impactful now.

This Zoom-specific play does exactly what I've come to look forward to from Daniel Prillaman plays: it sets you off down a path and then just when you're comfortable in the world, Daniel jerks the steering wheel and the narrative swerves off down a new, dangerous path. A terrific use of the medium and some beautifully open-ended opportunities for actors. Great stuff.

It must be Christmas, because Santa just brought me one of my favorite gifts: a new (to me) TJ Young play! This is a beautifully crafted ten minute gem featuring Young's trademark sparkling dialogue layered over the top of incredibly serious subject matter, washed in the periodical reminders that while this conversation is going on, Rex is desperately trying to poop. Or have a movement. Yet Jackie pours out her fears and insecurities through the toilet door, and ever-chivalrous Rex puts his bathroom shyness aside to do the right thing. And that final line? Perfect. Merry Christmas to me!

Oh, I just loved this play. It's a piece that drips with collective yearning: for lost potential, for what might be, for human contact from someone fresh and new. it's a love story where no love is professed, a chronicle of life where the world changes with the seasons, a character study where the Romance Depot becomes a character in itself. The relationship between Kevin and Beth is heartbreaking and life-affirming. Femia gives us no easy outs and never sugar-coats anything, with magical stage directions and stunning use of silence and mood. What a beauty of a piece.

A zippy throwback murder mystery that leaves us with a satisfying twist and a great callback final line. It's always gratifying to read the work of a playwright who has a good grasp on tension, never falling into the trap of oversharing, which pays off with the dawning realization of what's to come. Really nice work.

Media is awash in depictions of the undead living through successive generations, blending in but always slightly out of place: but what happens to the vampires when there's a COVID lockdown? Sarah Rae Brown delightfully explores the simple question of "what happens when a tech-savvy vampire and an old-fashioned vampire meet on ZOOM to discuss their unspoken love?" The generation gap concept within this genre is a delight.

Another typically great Jacquie Floyd-Priskorn comedy with so much heart. On top of the will-they-won't-they premise, Jacquie use her deft comic touch and eye for prop humor to craft a satisfying short: images like a beer bottle with a lit candle burning down as the oblivious Dean strips out of his soaking suit is priceless and would give any company plenty of fun. Sweet, quippy, and full of heart; what else would you expect?

'KINDERGARDEN' is a devastatingly frank discussion of sexual abuse made almost more unbearable in the casting of grown actors portraying five year olds who openly (sometimes blithely) discuss situations they can't understand but are scarring them deeply. Add to that the juxtaposition of a hyper-sexualized schoolyard choreography of Miley Cyrus's 'Wrecking Ball' and this piece will leave you gasping. An important, devastating piece.

I've always loved the hopelessly sad story of Lady Jane Grey, the 'Nine Days' Queen', who found herself and her faith at the wrong end of the wrath of the woman who would become known as Bloody Mary, the quintessential footnote of sixteenth century England. Rachel Luann Strayer has created the story that Jane has always deserved: an irreverent, witty, irrepressibly modern take on Jane, her family, and what might have been. This is an absolute delight with incredibly strong roles for actresses and is the rare play to truly cast new light on history. A real find.

The fact that this rollicking, quippy ride was inspired by actual tweets from Jose Canseco and his desire to capture sasquatches alongside fee-paying fanboys is one thing, but for Evan Baughfman to have interwoven Nate and Marissa's long-standing arguments, abandonment trauma, dystopian Supersquatch futures, and a time-travelling plea to not squander your future kid's college fund is an act of pure magic. I love a play that takes a kernel of a concept and draws it out to its ridiculous ends: this one just nails the idea.