Biographical play ‘The Trials of Oscar Wilde’ unravels at Theatre at The Mill on Thurs 15 May to uncover the ending of arguably one of the greatest literary masters in history.
From the triumphant opening night of renowned social comedy ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ and peak of Oscar Wilde’s career to a dramatic and public demise that resulted in his arrest and sentencing to two years hard labour.
This Irish writer and poet created masterpieces such as ‘An Ideal Husband’, ‘A Woman of No Importance’ and his only novel ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’. As an individual, Oscar Wilde was renowned for his sharp wit, flamboyant dress and glittering conversation, making him one of the biggest celebrities of his time.
Entangled in a legal conflict with his lover’s father, Oscar Wilde stood trial for gross indecency and laws that governed immoral activities in Victorian England. During his imprisonment the author found the harsh treatments intolerable as he was accustomed to his many creature comforts.
After serving his sentence, Oscar Wilde departed Britain for Paris, spending his final few years in impoverished exile. With a decline in his health in 1900, he was confined to his hotel until his death. One of his most famous and final quotes was amusingly, “My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One of us has got to go.”
Based on the original court transcripts and Wilde’s own sparkling words, audiences can feel what it was like to be in the company of a flawed genius – as this less than ideal husband was suddenly reduced to a man of no importance.
Find out if Oscar Wilde was harshly treated or whether he was the author of his own downfall on Thurs 15 May for one night only at Theatre at The Mill. Tickets, which cost £15, £13 & £11, can be booked online at www.theatreatthemill.com or through Box Office on 028 9034 0202.