In 1972 a gay hate crime in South Australia morphed into a major positive change for gay rights. The tragic death of Dr Ian Duncan is now being retold through Opera Australia.
Opera is known for its powerful melodramatic storylines and Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan is poignant and painful for the gay community. The story details one of Australia’s first known hate crimes where law lecturer Dr George Duncan, was thrown into a river and left to drown some fifty years ago in Adelaide, South Australia.
The event made national headlines including allegations of a police cover-up leading to a Scotland Yard investigation. In a twist of irony, the tragic event paved the way for gay law reform initiated by the then South Australian Premier Don Dunstan.
Operatic tenor Mark Oates in Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan
The Opera Australia production of this story has achieved award-winning success having played to standing ovations at the 2022 Adelaide Festival. However, its greatest accomplishment is in giving this story the attention it deserves.
Operatic tenor Mark Oates (The Marriage of Figaro/La Traviata) plays dual roles as Dr Ian Duncan and Premier Don Dunstan.
“What was stark for me was portraying the role of Don Dunstan in the Dunstan Playhouse,” says Oates.
“It’s part of the Adelaide Festival Centre which was created as a direct result of Don’s passion for the performing arts. I’ve been a massive fan of his since I was a kid. I have biographies and when I was younger, I saw multiple interviews with him, so I had a lot of thought about how he carried himself. My representation in this story is through two very strident moments where he announces he is reopening the inquest and when he felt that the law needed changing.”
“Lines like, “Night’s offerings are those of sweat and spit and cum”, gives a sense of time spent on the beat.”
The perpetrators of Duncan’s murder were suspected to be three senior vice squad police officers who were never found accountable. Premier Dunstan, an ally to the gay community (and often thought to be gay himself) pushed for the decriminalisation of homosexuality in South Australia, which finally happened in 1975 making it the first Australian state to do so. In 2002, a memorial to Dr. Duncan was established at the site of his murder at the River Torrens.
The cast of Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan
“I read Tim Reeves’s book The Death of Dr Duncan and understood much more about Ian Duncan as a man, and what happened to him at the time,” says Oates.
“He was an incredibly private man. During the first evidential case, there were some horrible things presented about him as a closeted gay man, and I try to evoke how scared he would have been. I’m accompanied by the most astonishing piece of music, written by Joe Twist, called the Drowning Song. It represents Ian falling into the river, his strong religious belief and his eventual surrender to drowning and dying. It’s incredibly emotional.”
“There are unsolved murders all over Australia and the world involving the queer community.”
The production has been written as an oratorio by Alana Valentine (Dark Emu) and Christos Tsiolkas (Loaded) and is directed by Neil Armfield (Cloudstreet). Through choral music, song and dance, it also incorporates inquest transcripts, press clippings and private correspondence associated with the case. Ultimately it pays tribute to Duncan whose death brought about positive change.
“The joy of this piece is the combination of the text with the music and the fact that it’s uncompromising,” says Oakes.
“Alana and Christos’s text is unapologetically in your face. The choir sings lines like “Night’s offerings are those of sweat and spit and cum,” which gives a sense of time spent on the beat. Christos has a reputation for being very open about sexuality and relationships, and it’s so beautiful that this piece is so honest. Joe’s score with its harmonies and rhythms is so evocative of the place, that you feel like you’re in a dark misty night. But the piece that follows is a very violent attack on the senses. It’s a reflection of what happened to these men. But then, this show is also an incredible expression of hope.”
Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan is confronting, not just for the queer community, but for everyone. It’s a tragedy filled with passion and emotion, particularly for Oates who is up front and centre.
Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan
“Although this work is focused on a specific historical event, it has a universal message about what happens when you don’t allow people to live an honest and respected life,” says Oates.
“We have a beautiful character called the Lost Boy and to me, he’s the most central character of the whole piece. The driving vehicle is Ian, but the Lost Boy is representative of all these queer men who went missing. There are unsolved murders all over Australia and the world involving the queer community. Not accepting someone for who they are is not acceptable.”
Watershed: The Death of Dr Duncan is playing at The Sydney Opera House 14–16 June 2024
For more: opera.org.au
