The timeless parable of a 16th-century horse dealer turned violent protester questions the personal cost of resistance in this awe-inspiring production from Omar Elerian

At the Shed in New York, attendees wearing enhanced glasses are witnessing an experimental new play where actors appear in video form

As bombs fell on the capital, a Bengal tiger was left all alone – until a US marine shot it. Rajiv Joseph explains why he brought the beast back from the dead for his Pulitzer-nominated drama

In Michael Abbensetts’ play, elegantly directed by Lynette Linton, characters work, dream, horse around and question the nature of home

This one-man play started out as one story and then broke into another, commenting on the first. It was a wake-up call

A teenage girl is visited by death – in the form of a parrot – and her mother is having none of it in Daina O Pusić’s striking feature debut

It’s the music that carries the emotional weight in this tale of love, loss and roots rock, starring the superb Arinzé Kene

Roy Williams, Rachel De-lahay, Justin Audibert and Charlene James select dramas that speak to our current moment

Andrew Scott was spellbinding in Present Laughter, Life of Pi stunned Sheffield and Tao of Glass was a tour de force

Standup, storytelling and poetry combine in this brilliant show about an inner-city trio on the verge of adulthood

Kwaku Mills is a revelation as a boy growing up amid poverty in this touring revival of Arinzé Kene’s crackling, compelling monologue

From rapping and rambling to Victorian female boxers, via Liverpool’s Dream, Asian football casuals and a teenage dance troupe, here are some of our readers’ top shows of the year

Conor McPherson’s West End musical puts a simple twist on familiar and obscure tracks, finding new shades of meaning