Matthew Harvey, the multitalented writer, composer, and performer, returns with Unbound, a hauntingly original new musical that brings witchcraft, adolescence, and identity together in one unforgettable story.
Captured live at London’s Hoxton Hall, Unbound follows Iris, a home-schooled teenager whose introduction to high school life goes wildly off course when a prank unleashes an ancient witch. The show’s concert recording features a powerhouse cast including Courtney Stapleton, Lauren Byrne, and Evelyn Hoskins.
The Unbound live concert cast recording was released on 31 October 2025, perfectly timed for Halloween. You can stream or download it on all major platforms here.
You’re releasing Unbound recorded at Hoxton Hall, what can you tell us about the album?
The Unbound album is the culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people. There’s a real boom of new musicals right now, which is incredible to see, and we wanted to do something a little different when it came to presenting this version of Unbound to audiences for the first time.
Being able to bring together this extraordinary team and cast at an iconic venue like Hoxton Hall was such a rare opportunity, and I knew I wanted to capture that night forever; recording the concert felt like the perfect way to do that.
We wanted to tell the story of Unbound without having to rely on staging or visuals, so we made the decision to incorporate a narrator, voiced brilliantly by Adam Pearce. He really threaded the musical numbers together in a way that not only made the concert feel really cohesive in the room, but also ensures the album itself tells the story clearly.
That was really important to us: that someone pressing play for the first time, who’s never heard of the show, can still follow the journey and get to know the world of Unbound.
Unbound began life with British Youth Music Theatre before its concert staging at Hoxton Hall, how has the project evolved since its first incarnation?
I had such an amazing experience writing the BYMT version of Unbound and seeing it come to life at Birmingham Hippodrome last year. The cast poured so much heart into the show, and watching how deeply they connected with it was genuinely moving. Some of them even came to see the Hoxton Hall concert — which I didn’t realise until I walked on stage and at the exact time I had something in my eye…
In terms of how the show has evolved, the BYMT production featured a cast of nearly 40 performers — which, for a composer, is an absolute gift — but it’s not the kind of scale you typically see in a brand-new musical. Shaping the piece into what could eventually become its professional form, with a smaller cast size, has been a really fun challenge.
I’ve just found out that Unbound has been selected as one of NYMT’s new musical workshops for their 50th season, which I’m thrilled about. It means we’ll be able to continue developing the larger version of the show while also refining this smaller configuration.
I’d love to see Unbound performed by schools and youth groups in the future — I think the setting and themes really speak to that age group, and it’s exciting to imagine the story reaching them in their own spaces.
The story blends high school drama with witchcraft and myth, what inspired this mix of genres?
There’s something about high school that naturally lends itself to the supernatural: the intensity of new relationships, the feeling of trying to belong, the way friend groups can feel almost cultish.
I wanted Unbound to start in a world audiences instantly recognise: the “new girl at school” gives everyone a familiar entry point so we can dive into the darker, more magical elements without needing lots of setup.
The show is really a combination of things I love: from horror films like It, Jennifer’s Body, and The Craft to stories such as Carrie and even Stranger Things. There’s a long tradition of young people facing supernatural forces, and it’s always been such an effective lens for exploring growing up — the fear, the power shifts, the sense that everything is changing around you.
That coming-of-age energy is at the heart of Unbound, and it’s why this story feels so right for a teenage cast and audience.
It was really important to me that even though Unbound and its score lean proudly into the 80s, the story still feels right for theatre audiences today. A lot of cult musicals set in high schools still frame their “outsiders” around things like appearance, sexuality, or other personal traits, and that didn’t sit comfortably with me.
In Unbound, it’s much simpler: if you’re from the town of Beggars Hollow, you’re part of the in-crowd. If you’re not, you’re an Outsider. I think everyone, at some point, has felt like they don’t quite belong, and tapping into that universal experience felt like the right way to tell this story without reinforcing outdated stereotypes.
My hope is that this choice helps the show connect with younger audiences in a way that’s both responsible and futureproof.
You not only wrote and composed Unbound but also perform as part of the onstage band. How do you balance those creative roles?
Pulling off this concert without producers or backing was definitely an ambitious undertaking — possibly too ambitious at moments. I was incredibly lucky to have Ryan Carter leading the charge; we’ve worked together before, and he’s built a career out of wearing every creative hat imaginable. This concert simply wouldn’t have happened without him.
We both put in a ridiculous number of hours in the lead-up, but being on stage that night, seeing everything come together, made it all feel worth it… Ryan may disagree, as he definitely worked far harder than I did!
I was the musical director for the BYMT version of Unbound, and some of my favourite moments from that process were discovering the sound of the show in the rehearsal room. I was able to bring a lot of that learning into the concert version.
Practically, it made sense for me to MD — I know the score inside out and had a clear idea of how I wanted it to feel. But if I’m honest, I also couldn’t resist the chance to be up there performing alongside the incredible cast that Ryan assembled.
And realistically… I was so nervous on the day that watching from the audience probably would’ve finished me off!
The whole thing was a huge challenge — and that’s exactly why I’m so proud of it. To pull something like this off at our level feels really special.
The concert recording captures a live energy. What was it like revisiting that experience while mixing the album?
It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since that night — it still feels like yesterday that we were loading sound equipment into Hoxton Hall at the crack of dawn!
I’m so excited to have had Spiritland Productions, the team behind the most recent Magic At The Musicals, mix the album. They operate out of a massive truck that houses a state-of-the-art music studio inside: it’s basically the Batmobile.
The second our brilliant engineer Will hit play, I was transported straight back to that night. I’d listened to clips here and there, but hearing the mixes come to life really made me appreciate just how much talent we had on that stage.
They’ve done an incredible job on the record and given me an album that not only sounds like a professional cast recording, but also captures the amazing live energy of the concert.
Most live recordings for musicals usually happen towards the end of a run, after weeks of rehearsals and months of performances. We had two days of rehearsals and one stagger-through on the day of the concert, so to capture performances of this quality is a testament to the cast’s professionalism, talent, and care.
I never imagined these songs could sound the way they do — it’s entirely down to the unique combination of people I was lucky enough to share that day with.
What would you say to anyone thinking of streaming Unbound?
I really hope you enjoy the album — and that you’ll continue to follow Unbound as it grows and evolves. I’ve never been more excited about the future of the show, and I hope this recording might be another step toward a full production one day.
None of it would have been possible without the incredible team, cast, and creatives who poured so much heart into making this concert happen, and it’s a privilege to share their work with you.
Unbound is a show that belongs to its audience, people who connect with the story, the music, and each other. So if you love what you hear, share it with someone you know. Grow the family, and take this journey with us!
