James Fritz Explained

James Fritz is a British playwright ^[1] known for Four Minutes Twelve Seconds, Parliament Square and The Flea. In reviews of The Flea during 2023, Claire Armitstead described Fritz as "one of the UK's most interesting playwrights" in the Guardian^[2] and Anya Ryan of Time Out called him "one of the most boundary-pushing playwrights working today".^[3]

Career

Fritz studied writing at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.^[4] In 2014 he wrote Four Minutes Twelve Seconds, which premiered at The Hampstead Theatre before transferring to Trafalgar Studios. His 2015 play Ross & Rachel debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival before transferring to 59E59 Theaters in New York.^[5] The same year Parliament Square won Fritz a Bruntwood Prize and went on to open at Royal Exchange, Manchester in 2017.^[6] In 2023 his play The Flea about the Cleveland Street Scandal premiered at The Yard Theatre.

Fritz has also worked extensively in audio drama and has won Gold at the Audio and Radio Industry Awards on two separate occasions. ^{[7] [8]}

Works

Stage

• 2011 - Lines
• 2014 - Four Minutes Twelve Seconds (winning Fritz Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright in 2015)
• 2015 - Ross & Rachel
• 2016 - The Fall
• 2017 - Start Swimming
• 2017 - Parliament Square^[9]
• 2018 and 2022 - Lava
• 2023 - The Flea

Radio plays

• 2016 - Comment is Free (winner of the Tinniswood Award^{[10] [11]} and the Richard Imison award.)
• 2017 - Death Of A Cosmonaut^[12]
• 2020 - Eight Point Nine Nine (Winner of the Audio and Radio Industry Awards Gold Award for Best Fictional Storytelling)^[13]
• 2022 - Skyscraper Lullaby^[14]
• 2022 - Dear Harry Kane (Winner of the Audio and Radio Industry Awards Gold Award for Best Drama^[15] and the Prix Europa for Best European Audio Single Fiction of the Year.) ^[16]
• 2023 - The Test Batter Can't Breathe^[17]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Plays To Perform - James Fritz. Nick Hern Books. 12 November 2023.
2. https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/oct/17/the-flea-review-the-yard-london-james-fritz The Flea review - royal scandal becomes a satirical pantomime - The Guardian, Claire Armitstead
3. https://www.timeout.com/london/theatre/the-flea-review The Flea Review - Time Out, Anya Ryan
4. News: Thompson . Jessie . Play Talk: James Fritz on writing about political protest and why boring theatre feels like a personal insult . 25 January 2024 . Evening Standard.
5. Web site: Wicker . Tom . James Fritz: The language of love sets everyone up for failure . Exeunt . 25 January 2024.
6. News: Love . Catherine . Protests and power games: how James Fritz's plays caught fire . 25 January 2024 . The Guardian.
7. https://www.radioacademy.org/arias/2021-arias ARIA Winners 2021
8. https://www.radioacademy.org/arias/2023-winners/ ARIA 2023 Winners
9. Web site: Meet the Playwright: James Fritz. 12 December 2017. 12 November 2023.
10. Web site: Audio Drama Awards The Society of Authors . 2022-04-03 . www.societyofauthors.org.
11. Web site: BBC Radio 4 - BBC Audio Drama Awards - The List of 2017 Winners . 2022-04-03 . BBC . en-GB.
12. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08mbhhc Death Of A Cosmonaut - BBC Radio 4
13. https://www.radioacademy.org/arias/2021-arias ARIA Winners 2021
14. https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Kelli-OHara-Dene-Benton-Brian-Stokes-Mitchell-More-Featured-in-Audible-Theater-Originals-20221208 Kelli O'Hara, Denée Benton, Brian Stokes Mitchell & More Featured in Audible Theater Originals - Broadway World
15. https://www.radioacademy.org/arias/2023-winners/ ARIA 2023 Winners
16. https://www.prixeuropa.eu/winner-2023 Prix Europa 2023 Winners
17. https://inews.co.uk/culture/radio/25-best-radio-dramas-download-now-2674888 The 25 Best Radio Dramas To Download Right Now - The Independent