Director Stanley Burleson: ‘Boni is a Surinamese resistance hero as we know him in the Netherlands’

“Before the rehearsals started, I was afraid that it might be very tense. But that is not the case at all.” Between the hustle and bustle of the tryouts, Stanley Burleson thinks back to the creation of the musical Boni. “It is of course a charged history, especially if you play for an audience of Dutch people, who are actually the aggressors in this story – the ones who caused the suffering. But it is very important to me to create a piece where everyone who walks out after watching it does not necessarily have to feel ashamed, but above all has gained understanding for something. We become closer when we understand each other.”

Burleson has 36 years of experience in the musical world: he has played in major productions such as Cats, Les Miserables and Aladdin and provided the choreographies of, among others The Adams Family and Was signed, Annie MG He can now add another experience to that long list: he is directing the new musical Boni, about the Surinamese resistance hero from the eighteenth century of the same name. In the interior of Suriname, Boni emerged as a leader in the fight against slavery. His life story is told with a mix of contemporary and traditional music styles: from rap and gospel to R&B and musical.

Burleson is supported by a cast of young people. “They tell Boni’s story in their own language,” says Burleson. “If you combine that with traditional influences from Surinamese music and culture, you get a very nice combination, and actually something that does not yet clearly exist – while there are so many young Surinamese in the Netherlands. It is very important that young people who grow up in the Netherlands between two cultures understand that the two also produce something: a new culture. Their culture. That they learn that that culture may be there and comes from somewhere, so that they can look at their past and their ancestors with pride.”

‘It is very important that young people who grow up in the Netherlands between two cultures understand that the two also produce something: a new culture’

Become even more Surinamese

Burleson himself grew up with a Dutch mother and a Surinamese father, in a village in North Holland. “My father was one of two black men in the community and adapted very quickly to life in that village.” Burleson and his brother “grew up as white boys. We had a black father and occasionally ate rice: that was the only difference. I have not been immersed in Surinamese culture.”

In the 1990s, Burleson played a leading role in the musical Faya: a love story between a Creole boy and a Hindustani girl, against the background of Surinamese independence. “That was my first contact with real Surinamese culture. Boni is the second production about Suriname that I have worked on, and I learn a lot about the culture from my actors. It is actually a very nice way to become even more Surinamese.”

The musical is also a special experience for the cast itself, says Burleson. “The actors are on stage for the first time without being ‘the exception’: the entire cast is black. And they tell their own history. Everyone in the cast has a link with the history of slavery.” For example, they have Surinamese ancestors, or grew up in Suriname themselves.

During the creation of the musical, Burleson had conversations and discussions with his cast about the story they would tell. Burleson: “Our ancestors, black and white, experienced a history that, thank God, has been resolved, but of which we still feel the echoes. It can be down to very small things.” He cites the example of his assistant director, who bears the surname that a slave owner once gave to his ancestors. “Their real name has disappeared, no one knows it anymore. So you go through life asking the question: what would my real name have been? Which family do I belong to?”

Burleson saw that many feelings could be released during the rehearsals. “But when it comes to the cultural background and the past, the cast actually becomes very happy to seek out that sadness and to find joy in each other. It’s a kind of healing process. I notice that it strengthens many people in the cast to be able to tell this story with pride. And that the audience embraces that joy and pride.”

Learn not to underestimate yourself

There is a considerable chance that the public is not yet familiar with Boni’s story. “When I was in high school I learned about the Soldier of Orange, about Hannie Schaft. All Dutch resistance heroes were printed in it. It now surprises me that a number of actors who went to school in Suriname learned exactly the same thing there – but not about Surinamese history. Not about Boni.”

While stories like Boni’s are valuable for young people, Burleson says: “Especially for this generation of young people who, for example, live in a country where they would not live without this history. It is important that they learn not to underestimate themselves. You don’t have to be an underdog, you don’t have to suffer your fate. You can determine your own destiny and exert influence.”