Eric Nogas Sounds Off As Captain Fred in Classic Christie Mystery

Eric Nogas as boat captain Fred Narracott, who "has a little bit of pirate in him."
PHOTO: Jan Cartwright

In the Agatha Christie classic murder mystery And Then There Were None, every character is both a suspect and a potential victim.  The first character to speak is crusty boat captain Fred Narracott, who has just ferried guests over from the mainland to Soldier Island, off the coast of Devon, England.  Unbeknownst to the visitors, it will be a one-way trip for most of them!

In the Farmington Players production (February 9 – 25), Eric Nogas plays Narracott, the ferry boat captain.  Eric explains how he prepared for his character:  “Agatha Christie had pretty detailed descriptions of all of the characters in the book except for Fred.  So it was really wide open for me.  All that we know is that he comes from the west country of England.  I did a lot of research on the west county and its accent. I found out it is where the famous Pirate Blackbeard comes from. So maybe Fred has a little bit of pirate in him.”

In addition to playing Narracott, Eric also designed sound for the show.  The weather is a key element of the story, and Eric takes great care to add realistic sound effects to help set the mood of each scene. As Eric says, “Sound is something that I love doing and finding the right music or sound effect is so enjoyable to me and the Barn has given me a great opportunity to explore this passion.”  He’s currently Sound Chair for the Farmington Players, and he has also designed sound for The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Becky’s New Car, Spamalot, Calendar Girls, Greetings, and the upcoming Into the Woods, in which he will also be performing.  And Then There Were None is Eric’s first non-musical role after making his stage debut in Spamalot last year.

Eric observes that Agatha Christie mysteries are timeless: “Even though this novel was written almost 80 year ago, human nature has not changed all that much.  Put 10 people in a room that you know nothing about and one tends to make judgments or assumptions about people because of the way they look, their job, how they dress, their accent etc.  Christie does a wonderful job of weaving a web of mistrust and misunderstandings.”   He adds that this “show has been well cast and patrons will find some familiar faces on stage but will be delighted by the newcomers as well.”

Eric lives in Farmington with his wife Christa and kids Jack and Sydney.  He has been part of local youth theater for the last seven years, including stage managing, assistant directing and set building. He works as Branch Manager at Snelling Staffing Service’s Southfield office.

And Then There Were None has 9 performances at Farmington Players Barn Theater from February 9 - 25.  The show is proudly sponsored by Weinstein Jewelers.  Tickets are available online at farmingtonplayers.org or by emailing boxoffice@farmingtonplayers.org or calling the Barn box office at 248-553-2955.