Margaret Baker
Contributing Writer
Since moving to West Virginia from Mississippi, Eric Fritzius has come at theater from every direction. As a playwright, his plays have been performed across greater Appalachia and “even north of the Mason-Dixon.” He has frequently worked with Greenbrier Valley Theatre as an actor and director of short plays. Eric has directed three productions at the Pocahontas County Opera House, including two years of the Opera House PlayFest and the full length The People at the Edge of Town by A.J. DeLauder. When not immersed in drama Eric’s creative streak turns to writing. He is the author of the short modern fantasy collection, A Consternation of Monsters. His writing has appeared in Greenbrier Valley Quarterly Magazine, the anthologies Mountain Voices, Dark Tales of Terror, Diner Stories: Off the Menu, Writerly Advice, and most recently in the Covid-19 anthology In the Midst. He is the narrator of 11 audio books. Eric is employed by the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine where he fakes illnesses to train medical students.
Eric did not hesitate when asked to direct Deera’s Country Funeral for the Pocahontas County Drama Workshop’s September performance.
“I fell in love with the play at the first staged reading for it at the Opera House, in early 2024. I knew before that reading that Ned Dougherty was a good playwright, because I’d had the pleasure of acting in two of his plays at Greenbrier Valley Theatre. I just like the way his mind works. Not only was the play both fantastically funny and touching in equal amounts, but the script also contained concepts that I dare say have never appeared on a stage in the history of theatre as an art form. I mean, really, who’s ever heard of a town throwing a funeral for a tractor? And I’d also never seen the staggeringly funny event that occurs in Act 2 Scene 2 of the play which must be witnessed to be fully appreciated. As Deera was developed over three total staged readings, including at the Barter Theatre, the script got stronger each time. But I knew from that very first reading that if the opportunity to direct Deera ever came up, I would be dumb not to say yes.”
Deera’s Country Funeral by Ned Daugherty and directed by Eric Fritzius will be presented at the Pocahontas County Opera House on Friday and Saturday, September 12 and 13, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, September 14, at 3 p.m.
