Yorkshire 1895
A Kept Man is a bold new musical play by acclaimed West End writer and theatre artist Matthew Bugg.
Set in the shadow of the infamous Oscar Wilde trials, A Kept Man asks a vital question: whose history is remembered, and whose lives are forgotten?
This is not another retelling of Wilde's downfall, but a new story altogether—one that brings into focus the working-class men whose lives became entangled in the scandal before being quietly erased from history.
Rooted in the wild landscapes of the Pennines, the production pulses with the spirit of the North. An original score fuses the grandeur of 19th-century classical music with pagan folk traditions and bold electronic beats and synths, creating a musical language that feels both hauntingly timeless and strikingly modern.
Like sunlight breaking across a rugged landscape, A Kept Man reveals the unexpected beauty, resilience and humanity of lives shaped by prejudice, class and silence.
Where others have painted portraits of the famous, A Kept Man turns its gaze towards those left beyond the frame, illuminating the forgotten lives history has allowed to fade from view.
REVIEWS OF OUR LAST WEST END HIT, MISS NIGHTINGALE
"Brilliantly well written with a hilarious script and brilliant songs"
***** WEST END WILMA
"Bursting with passion - a showcase of enormous talent"
* * * * * MUSICAL THEATRE REVIEW
Quirky wit and innuendo lie above a tale of love and loss"
***** LAST MINUTE THEATRE
"A wonderfully crafted production - not to be missed"
* * * * * REMOTE GOAT
"A well-told and captivating love story"
* * * * WHATSONSTAGE
"Deeply touching and raucously funny"
***** THE NEW CURRENT
"Clever, thoughtful and entertaining"
***** JEWISH CHRONICLE
