Recommended by Claudia Haas

Two traditions and who cares? It’s about love and yuletide and Christmas cheer. Traditions and language may differ but the love from both sides shines through,

A beautiful piece in the spirit of the holidays. It not only addresses the (sort of) gift of the magi but the cult of being popular, a teen, and what is right and wrong and when do you draw the line.

Feeny-Wiliams offer us laws (and a police officer) gone amok. Throw in global warning, illegal ice skates, and there's a cautionary and delightful tale here. Ice and snow can be scary, fun, and illegal. Beware.

Mabey manages to sweep away cobwebs and give us an affirmation of gender in all ways. With secrets revealed, a couple learns to love and accept all because in a good world, love wins.

More than the December holidays, Thanksgiving seems to be the time of truths about families. Heirloom recipes, guessing what you are grateful for .. or not, it can be an emotional dinner. Donnelly sets the table with a fractured family where healing is possible but not guaranteed. A remembrance of a family recipe conjures up the good, the bad, and the ugly. Time heals and time gives. Donnelly offers both. A play that exposes truths, it gives us an ending worthy of giving thanks.

Has Norkin set the stage for a new Bible to be written? Or did that not work so well the first time? In a deceptively simple ten-minute, Norkin has given us an epic tale. Tale as old as time? Maybe. The seamless blending of hard truths with beacons of hope and some gosh-darn puns and humor, it’s a play that will leave you lost in space and thought.

What’s that line? “If you didn’t want me to write about it, you should have behaved better!” Alterman turns the tables on family life. Even when the going gets tough, Alterman spices it all up with surprises and humor. A hard look at family dynamics through a delightful theatrical lens. The ending has you lost in “what’s next?”

Behind every magical Christmas are parents who were magicians. Clarke captured my sister and I every Christmas and later my own kids. Oh those tiptoes in the living room in the middle of the night to see what we could see. A charming, family-friendly Christmas gift.

How many times can I recommend this? As a lifelong fan of Balanchine’s Nutcracker, I remember being uncomfortable during “Tea” and “ Coffee.” Balanchine changed the names of the dances but kept the stereotypical costumes and dance steps. Lucy Wang deftly brings us a Nutcracker for our century. Be Like Water contains all the wit and smart dialogue we are used to getting from the playwright. She infuses all her characters with a strong sense of who they are. Bruce Lee, flowers, and food give us the unexpected. So appropriate for this reimagined ballet to be a Reimagine finalist.

With gorgeous, carefully crafted characters created, The Butterfly Anchor will resonate long after the play is done. Friedman gives us a tale of more than life and death - but what is in-between - something we may have all thought about. Awaiting death, there is a lot of life resounding in all characters. Friedman manages to celebrate small lives in a world that hints at the fear of death and the will to live.