Opera written about hate crime
January 27, 2025 7:51 PM Subscribe
In 1972, a gay hate crime was allegedly committed by police in Adelaide (Australia). Now it's a work of opera. Operatic works, particularly traditionally religious oratorios, rarely depict queer characters. But this new Australian work brings reverence to the harrowing true story of a historical gay hate crime.
Britten's Peter Grimes was premiered in 1945 and although superficially about a fisherman loner it was understood from the start as a story of a gay man driven to suicide. The mob scene and mad scene in the last act are among the most shocking in the repertoire.
posted by interglossa at 6:45 AM on January 28 [3 favorites]
posted by interglossa at 6:45 AM on January 28 [3 favorites]
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Other Adelaidian: “…well, okay I guess. Quit or retired.”
Me: “Hell no. Those old farts who preserve decommissioned cop cars and bikes and stuff? You make it as far as retirement in SAPOL and I’ve got real questions about how many queer kids you threw off the University Footbridge or indigenous kids you threw either into lockup or a savage beating at for having the temerity to be inconvenient. But if you quit, even just because the pay and conditions sucked, at least you made a choice not to be *that*.
posted by MarchHare at 1:43 AM on January 28 [6 favorites]