Four Minutes Twelve Seconds

He says they all do it. These kids, you know, they’ve got their phones. Film everything. Can’t say I blame them. I would at that age.

Following wide acclaim at Hampstead Downstairs last year, James Fritz’s Olivier-nominated debut play Four Minutes Twelve Seconds transfers to Trafalgar Studios this November.

Seventeen year old Jack is the apple of his mother’s eye. Di and David have devoted their whole lives to giving him every opportunity they never had and, as a result, Jack is smart, outgoing, and well on his way to achieving the grades to study Law at Durham University.

But, a startling incident outside the school gates threatens to ruin everything they’ve strived for - an incident that suggests a deep hatred of their son. As events begin to accelerate, Di and David struggle to find answers, doubting Jack’s closest friends, Jack himself and ultimately themselves. Who can they trust as faith in their son’s innocence begins to crumble?

In a world where smartphones are ubiquitous, James Fritz’s deeply provocative and desperately relevant drama throws light on the insidious opportunities new technology offers – where nothing dies online, except reputation.

The cast of Four Minutes Twelve Seconds will be reprising their roles from Hampstead Downstairs: Kate Maravan (British comedy series Broken News, BBC TV series New Tricks) will star as Di, Jonathan McGuinness (BBC production of Wolf Hall, Love’s Labour’s Lost (The Royal Shakespeare Company)) will play David, Ria Zmitrowicz (Arcadia (The English Touring Theatre), The Crucible (The Royal Exchange)) will play Cara.

Fritz recently received critical acclaim for his sell-out play Ross & Rachel starring Molly Vevers at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, for which Vevers won The Stage Award for Acting Excellence.
He began writing Four Minutes Twelve Seconds following a conversation with his mother, questioning what he would have had to do for her to turn him in to the police. What followed was an exploration into the morality of having children and how parents’ relationships change as children become adults capable of making their own choices. What if those choices are wrong?

Writer James Fritz says, I can't wait to see Four Minutes Twelve Seconds up on its feet again. The production at The Hampstead was such a thrill for me – to work with such an incredible team on my professional debut was more than I could have hoped, and I loved seeing the response from the audience night after night. I couldn't be more excited to get that team back together and see what the production does to a whole new bunch of people.

Four Minutes Twelve Seconds earned Fritz an Olivier Award nomination and was runner-up for the Verity Bargate Award in 2013.

This production is part of ‘Hampstead Theatre at the Trafalgar Studios’.