Recommended by John Mabey

Letters across time both separate and connect two characters in the moving and epic play, YOURS UNTIL NIAGRA FALLS, by Claudia Haas. Using a style inspired by Gurney's 'Love Letters,' Haas makes the form her own by centering the narrative on a friendship that crosses borders and boundaries. Haas writes amazing insight by active exploring antisemitism and betrayal in the lives of her characters. And the ability to stage this with 2 to 10 actresses provides so many opportunities too. Wonderful!

The settings change fast and the comedy comes faster in THE IMPOSSIBLE NARRATOR by James Binz. As each scenario unfolds, the audience is also treated to a farcical take on tropes in each genre, laughing along at them with the characters. There's lots of action throughout, making this short play high energy for any festival.

There is such beautiful creativity and themes woven together in THE PECULIAR PUPPETS OF PHILIP PLATT by Brenton Kniess. The heavy themes of death and grief are balanced by comedy and humor as the power of connection is explored throughout. There's a strong element of hope that carries through as the play itself is a joy to read or watch. And there's so much room here for directors, performers, and prop teams to have as much fun as those in the audience. Well done!

There's so much that's exciting and special about THE SMUGGLER, OR A NEW JANE by S. Dylan Zwickel. I was immediately invested in the strong point of view of the characters and the nuanced way bodily autonomy and abortion access are explored as the story unfolds. Through each revelation, the characters collide with each other and themselves while an emotional honesty grounds the story throughout. This play is entertaining and daring and will lead audiences in urgent conversations long afterward.

RECOVER by Helen T. Mariam is a powerful play exploring intersections of gender, race, mental health, and college football. The characters are layered and dynamic in culturally specific ways that make the story feel deeply grounded and dynamic. And from a mental health background both counselor and client perspectives throughout felt honest and earned in their complexities. This play is also incredibly timely in today's culture of sports/celebrity/personal branding on social media.

There’s so much to enjoy about LAST GASP by David Beardsley. The sci-fi is both comedic and thrilling as it all feels just within reach. As tension builds throughout, Beardsley constantly raises the stakes through to the surprising and unexpected conclusion. A great addition to any festival that will definitely have the audience talking afterward.

Complicated grief takes many forms, especially when mourning after a tragedy. And in IVY: A MONOLOGUE, by Asher Wyndham, we meet a character who has such urgent needs and struggles to process them. As the safe space she’s created inside no longer feels secure, the threats outside start to intrude as a metaphor for the conflict within. And the ending delivers such a pivotal moment that both concludes the monologue while continuing the story of this character in our minds.

In Weekend at Herbie's by Randy Hunt there’s high laughs from start to finish as a group of friends experience the consequences of having more fun than expected. Hunt gives the perfect amount of story to let the comedy shine from start to finish, escalating the laughs through to the final moments. I saw this play on stage at a theatre festival and the raucous laughter and loud applause were well deserved.

Robert J. LeBlanc is a dynamic and powerful storyteller, and in The Angel we meet 2 characters with great depth and even deeper secrets. The pacing moves perfectly from moment to moment until the thrilling conclusion. I saw this production onstage at a theatre festival and it started the night off so strong with a bang.

TTC AND ALL THE OTHER ACRONYMS IDK by Lauren Davenport is complex, poignant, raw, and honest. It holds unique emotional truths about pregnancy and body autonomy while honoring the messiness of its characters. There's also a magical point in the play where we're brought to the time of Mary Tudor, making the themes of the play even sharper in a historical context. The exploration of different types of friendship between these characters was also exciting with each voice truly unique.