Recommended by Steven G. Martin

DC Cathro dramatizes a gentle truth in this short play: we love who we love, and we love when they are happy. We will go to great lengths to make them happy, even if it means feigning an interest in things we don't necessarily like ourselves, including soul-sucking ceramics and football jerseys. "A Precious Moment with Bonnie and Neil" is a reminder that our loved one's happiness just as important as our own. Recommended.

Is there a perfect match out there for everyone? Yes, Neil McGowan says, if a person is willing to expand horizons more than just a little bit. Soulmate, Inc. is a well-structured comedy that nicely builds on the lunacy of its premise. But the comedy is tempered by glass-shard-like reality when our hero is told about what it means to really connect with another person. Cynics will laugh, realists will nod at this funny, deceptively harsh comedy.

Jennifer O'Grady has crafted a nice portrait of friendship that remains strong even during rough times: no plans for Christmas, not much food in the cupboard, no job prospects and even questioning why friends are friends to begin with. Most Wonderful would be a terrific addition to holiday- and Christmas-themed festivals and productions.

As Elizabeth reconsiders what her future holds, she is confronted -- literally -- by her personal history and women's history in this funny, fierce 10-minute play. When we try to live in the present, how much of our past do we discard? Bravo to Rachel Bublitz for ratcheting up the tension and theatricality in an unexpected manner. Three wonderful roles for three generations of women actors.

The title Breakfast for Quartet is apropos as Nicholas Thurkettle composes dialogue for four distinct voices. Themes emerge for each character and then for the larger group as phrases repeat and evolve, and sometimes blend into others. Thurkettle shows that even distinct, diverse characters have commonalities, which could enrich our lives ... if only we would take a moment to listen.

"Ever after" is an awfully long time, and Hayet tweaks the fairy-tale concept of living happily ever after in "Everlasting Chocolate Therapy." Bo and Chuck live a bittersweet reality, forced into circumstances that began when they were 11 years old. But Hayet gives them hope, that even they can try to change their lives.

Through contrast of dialogue and action, Emily Hageman creates two memorable young characters meeting under circumstances that an audience will recognize but neither of them understands. Caroline's cheerful chattiness and completely self-centered view of the world is balanced by José's somber silence, uncertainty and longing for his parents. One child has seemingly everything, the other child has seemingly everything taken away.

BLANK GAY PROFILE, OFFLINE puts its hero through the ringer -- self-disgust and self-deprecation, drunken disillusionment, and an (almost) mid-life crisis-like questioning of his life achievements and choices. Wyndham takes aim at, and hits, so many targets: social dating apps, A-gays, the need for love. And it subtly begins with the heartbreaking setting, "Night time, Friday or Saturday night. A time people should be out having fun." And then comes the ringer. This is a funny, brutal, exhausting play. It isn't an easy play, but it is a high-voltage electric shock one. Very highly recommended.

Among the strengths of Bavoso's #AREASONABLEAMOUNTOFCAPS is its specificity. The time and location of this play are absolutely integral to understanding the characters and action. This play could only take place when and where Bavoso sets it, which leads to details in the dialogue and characterizations that added so much to my enjoyment.

Bublitz masterfully shows how a word or two, an action or two, can raise a person and her self-esteem or, in the case of EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH, deflate them. Audiences come to their own conclusions thanks to Bublitz's finely written dialogue and actions that feel real-life, low-key and non-melodramatic. A wonderful short play.