In 1997, Bartlett collaborated with Artangel on a solo performance work The Seven Sacraments Of Nicolas Poussin, developed the following year into a dramatic oratorio. In 2006, he participated in an event with George Chakravati as part of the latter's Artangel project To the Man in My Dreams.
Since his first novel – Who Was That Man? A Present for Mr. Oscar Wilde (1989) – Neil Bartlett has explored Wilde's works, life, and influence through writing, the staging of Wilde's works for theatre and radio, and In Extremis: A Love Letter (2000), an original play commissioned by National Theatre for the 100th anniversary of Wilde's death.