Recommended by Maximillian Gill

I am so impressed by how much Murdock is able to get out of a simple premise and just two characters. Their interaction is natural and organic, at times funny and at other times poignant. There is a section on the death of stars that is one of the most affecting things I've read in a while. Multiple contrasts between the two characters keep everything moving and dramatic, but their connection is a strong through-line that easily takes us to a wonderful close.

Martin pulls off something very tricky in this short piece by satirizing religious orthodoxies while at the same time affirming the basic tenets of cooperation and community-building that form the core principles of all religions. I absolutely love the way a scenario showing humanity at its most petty and self-centered deftly pivots and resolves with warm evocations of fellow feeling. I can't fail to mention how funny it is throughout, with many bold and subtle references to the gospel. The play is enjoyable for its lightness of technique, but it is also full of themes that warrant deeper contemplation.

The set-up and central conflict of this wonderful play are very simple and straight-forward, yet Hammond shows just how much textured character interaction and sheer fun a skillful writer can get out of a simple premise. The drama is given a very light touch that keeps everything moving in a witty, involving fashion, so much so that I wasn't prepared for such a poignant and affecting close. Ultimately, it is a study of grief and moving on from loss that gets to the very core of the human experience.

A wonderful and tightly written play. The piece gains true power from the outwardly simple story of two friends discussing conspiracy theories and their various guises. Both of the characters are very individually drawn and come from perfectly believable psychological places. Their interactions have surprising results but are always organic. I love the respect granted to different world-views, however bizarre and ungainly in aspect. The mysterious thing in the walls adds another element that plays in a way that feels genuine and completely earned at the resolution.

It's always wonderful to revisit these characters, all fleshed out so well that they're as familiar as real people. However, the play doesn't reside in easy familiarity but instead derives its power from forcing these characters to take on new and uneasy situations. Watching this family band together to face down an abuser is a delight, and the confrontation itself is both tense and peppered with Williams's characteristically deft brand of humor. I am also impressed by the subtle way the writer adds references to the previous plays in the series to allow this piece to stand on its own.

Like all wars, the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq has produced a lot of literature, but only rarely do we encounter a work that gives the most important perspectives to the Iraqi people. This tight, three-character play is filled with a lot of relevant discussion about the politics of the war, but its focus is on people, both Iraqi and American, trying to survive in terrifying circumstances at the same time that they form tentative connections with each other. A stunning work.

This intense historical play puts us in Havana at a time of social and political change. Shaffer handles the subject and characters deftly, fully leaning into the dramatic possibilities but maintaining an organic touch. Not everything happens as expected, but every action is believable and the characters richly filled out. One of the dominant themes is illusion and the ease with which we fall for illusion over reality when we contemplate a different culture. It's a lesson relevant to 1957 but also to our own time.

This play is simply stunning. The set-up is deceptively simple: two roommates, one white and one black, negotiate the daily challenges of living with another person while also treading around the racial divide. Yet what Monks does with this premise is astounding. The various micro-aggressions compound and drive the narrative with a deftly handled tension. I was continually impressed by how effortlessly Monks maintains interest and variety in what is essentially a two-hander. The way the piece connects quotidian racist attitudes with the epidemic of violence against black women is bold and breathtaking. A formidable work.

What continues to impress me about Wagner's work is the writer's ability to come at a situation with a light-hearted tone but suddenly and unexpectedly hit the viewer with a moment of sharp insight into the commonality of the human experience that just feels very right. Here the writer applies this gift to the situation we have all been enduring for the last year in a two-hander about the real and ephemeral qualities of true human connection. Perfect for Zoom and perfect for our times.

I am truly astonished by how much honest human emotion and lived experience is packed into this one-act piece. This play contains a coup de theatre that really caught me off guard. A character starts telling a story, which we see acted out by a younger version. However, this standard technique is stepped up when figures from the other character's past start to interact with the memory because of course, when someone else is describing a memory we tend to invest it with our own memories rather than just listening passively. A really wonderful and true moment!