Recommended by Steven G. Martin

Floyd-Priskorn plays with an audience's expectations and biases, then reveals the surprising truth as to the baddie in this short horror play. The script is teeming with backstory, mythology, and rich characterizations, but good grief that reveal had me shaking cobwebs from my brain. [24/11/02]

Richter reverses every cliché about vampires with his creation of Trevor, and it's genuinely touching. Add the self-assured ghost of Emily Dickinson, some comedy, some over-the-top horror, and "This Short Life" is a standout script that would be wonderful in any festival. [24/11/1]

It's fun whiplash when Floyd-Priskorn shifts from genuine, creepy, goosebumps-inducing horror (the concept of "spooning" in bed undergoes a drastic transformation here) to puerile, sophomoric, side-splitting humor. Nothing in "Sleep Talker" is halfway, and it's a great read because of it. [24/10/31]

Jasmine and Karl, protagonists in Harper's play have the same goal - success - but different means to achieve it. Both know they are right, both use multiple tactics to get the better of the other, and audiences respect their points of view.

Lucy Wang's short comic monologue is a perfect response to that first moment when you realize other people see you as old and, as a result, less than. I would love to see "My Preferred Pronouns are Miss and Empress" in performance. [24/10/23]

Rex McGregor has built a perfect world for the setting of "The Mama and the Papa." I love that the era and the location lead to the central conflict and influence these supernatural characters' decisions. I also enjoy plays that put extraordinary characters in everyday circumstances, and these are two of the most extraordinary characters ever. [24/10/23]

Aaron Murphy's short drama set in the 1990s humanely shows multiple sides to its controversial issue: the philosophical/theoretical side, the loving/emotional side, and the side with matter-of-fact, lived experience. Murphy finds a balance between them, neither judging nor treating them as mouthpieces nor sentimentalizing them.

"One Final Caller" has strongly identified characters, amazing opportunities for a sound designer, especially, and a thoughtful, encompassing perspective. [24/10/22]

Terrifying, the violent act. Terrifying, the seething rage exposed after the mask falls. Terrifying, the visuals and sounds in this play. Daniel Prillaman's play, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe, will shock and upset audiences. It will stay with you awhile. [24/10/17]

If want to see a person's true colors, put them in a stressful situation. Wren Aubrey Latham does exactly that -- to an extreme -- in "Apocalypse Roadtrip." The world is a mess, but I like that Latham focuses on the drama in Quinn and Mitchy's friendship. There's even positivity in this short play, which I love. [24/10/15]

DC Cathro has written a fun twist on the haunted house trope in this short play -- the benefits of living with ghosts! Mandy the homeowner and Corrine the houseguest are terrific foils who play off each other well, there are plenty of opportunities for stagecraft with the ghostly shenanigans, there's a Gladys Kravitz sighting and a nice bit of subtext about the ridiculousness of housing costs. This is a pretty rich horror-comedy. [24/10/15]