Rating: ★★★★½
Venue: Flight Path Theatre, Marrickville
Presented by: Crying Chair Theatre & Secret House
Written by: James Fritz
Directed by: Jane Angharad
SYNOPSIS
If you’ve ever wondered how quickly one small video can blow a life apart, 4 Minutes 12 Seconds gives you the answer — with bite, wit, and brutal honesty.
Meet Di and David, two proud parents who believe their teenage son Jack has the world in his hands. Then, a four-minute-twelve-second video surfaces online — and suddenly, trust, privacy, and love start to wobble like a phone in shaky hands.
It’s an electrifying story of modern morality: how far we’ll go to protect the people we love, and how much of ourselves we’ve already given away to the digital world.
(No spoilers — this one’s best experienced cold.)
What Critics Are Saying
“A digital-age gut-punch — gripping, human, and uncomfortably real.”
★★★★½ – Limelight Arts
“From the first tense heartbeat to the final silence, this production holds you in its vice grip.”
★★★★½ – The Scoop
“Raw, relevant, and brilliantly acted — a mirror held to our modern moral chaos.”
★★★½ – Cultural Binge
Direction That Cuts Deep
Jane Angharad directs with a surgeon’s precision — scenes are tight, transitions seamless, and the silences land as hard as the dialogue. She builds tension like a thriller, without ever losing emotional truth.
Performances That Glow
Emma Dalton’s Di is nothing short of a masterclass in emotional control — every flicker of restraint, every crack in her composure feels earned and utterly human. Watching her unravel is both painful and hypnotic; she captures the impossible tightrope of a mother torn between protection and truth. Dalton doesn’t just perform — she lives in the skin of a woman who’s spent her life keeping the walls up, only to find they’re made of glass.
James Smithers, as David, delivers a performance that hums with quiet volatility. He’s the perfect storm of pride, fear, and love colliding all at once — a father trying to do the right thing in a world that’s rewritten the rulebook overnight. There’s an authenticity in his stillness, a kind of exhausted strength that grounds the chaos around him.
Kira McLennan and Nicholas McGrory bring the heartbeat of the younger generation — their scenes crackle with fire, confusion, and an aching honesty that cuts through the adult noise. Together, they embody the play’s central tension between digital transparency and human messiness, offering moments of raw vulnerability that make the story hit even harder.
Design That Speaks Volumes
The minimalist design turns the stage into a digital echo chamber — light, sound, and shadow pulse in rhythm with the story’s heartbeat. Every shift in tone feels physical; you can almost feel the static in the air.
WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT
Because it’s smart, fast, and painfully relatable. 4 Minutes 12 Seconds captures the uneasy truth of our connected world — where secrets spread faster than compassion and every click has consequences.
It’s theatre that doesn’t wag its finger; it just holds up the mirror and lets you squirm, laugh, and think. You’ll leave chatting with strangers about what you would do — and that’s the sign of a show that hits its mark.
FINAL VERDICT
4 Minutes 12 Seconds is everything modern theatre should be: relevant, punchy, emotional, and quietly explosive.
If you crave storytelling that lingers long after the curtain falls, this one’s for you.
⭐ 4½ stars — thoughtful, thrilling, and totally absorbing. A must see.
🎟 Tickets: Book now at Humanitix
📍 Flight Path Theatre, Marrickville