Recommended by Claudia Haas

DeFrates takes a nursery rhyme, turns it upside down and spins a tale of - lost love? Moonstruck? Forbidden love? You decide. Part whimsy, all heart - this moon above a garden will have you longing for the possibilities. And the impossibilities.

A lot goes on in this seemingly breezy conversation between Rory and Lola. A subject not talked about (probably not considered cool with teens), Leilani Larson approaches the subject as Rory does - that asexuality happens and nothing needs to be assumed. There is a beautiful moment that happens as Lola overhears a conversation that I won’t spoil for you. Read it, produce it and let it happen for you.

“Hell is other people” or maybe “Heaven is other people.” A ticking clock, high stakes, and a hard look at the “others” in our lives, Fenton lays out the groundwork for surprises,

Good and evil. Two sides of the same coin? Weaver offers a seemingly glib exchange between the two. But nothing is glib. And nothing is easy. Even with God and the Devil - nothing is black and white. A huge play in a small amount of time. A huge wish that this small conversation exists.

Sapio has succinctly explained to me the Minnesota spring which has confused me for twenty years. Nature is fickle as are all the characters except fall. Which makes sense in our climate-challenged world where the only promise is that the leaves indeed will fall. Theatrical and a boon for designers. A fantastical look at our nutso world.

We all need a Bobby in our life. And Bear. And Brompton. Plumridge gives us a Bear interlude that is interrupted by love. We should all be interrupted by love.

Disclosure: I was raised by a father who put on the tinsel 1 strand at a time. Really, Lorne and Molly - don’t even go there. Soucy opens up the Christmas traditions that are sacred. Choose your fights or you might wind up with children that create a thermo-nuclear war. Tinsel escalates. Soucy escalates. To throw tinsel or to place tinsel? Soucy asks this in earnest. Think carefully before you answer. Don’t endanger your holly jolly Christmas. (I now await the Fruitcake Wars play.)

Puller brings us a tale of racism that is accessible to young children. Yes, children will laugh and clap and later think as they choose a crayon. One of the beauties of the play is that she has not dumbed anything down for children but actually provides clarity for all ages. The flawed but easy “all crayons matter” hits home. The ending will surprise. Puller is shining a light and not giving an easy out. A gem that will engage the young and old. The play is a portal for discussion.

How Higbee can take a mother, a daughter, and a goldfish and mine it into a twisty, pseudo-whodunnit is why I return to his plays again and again. This may surpass “A Fish Called Wanda” as my favorite goldfish tale. The under currents run deep but I was still jolted at the end. This was born to be staged.

Wang knows how to explore relationships with food. With all in its proper place, Aimee bids farewell to the appetizers and entrees in her life as she looks forward to the dessert. Unique, just sweet enough, and leaves you hungering for more of Aimee.