In the Key Moments series, the main character highlights benchmarks from his/her life. This week: Sem Konijn, student at a theater course. A video in which he sings about his concerns about the world attracted a million viewers. Now he is starring in a play about Anne Frank. “If you wrap your worries in hope, it works.”
His hair has an old-fashioned cut. Tightly combed. It is part of his stage role, which takes the audience back to the war years. To be precise: to the period 1942-1944, when Anne Frank and her family were in hiding in the Secret Annex. They shared their hiding place with dentist Pfeffer and the Van Pels couple and their son Peter. He was 15 years old when he went into hiding. And falls in love with Anne. In the theater performance Yours Anne Sem Konijn plays the role of Peter van Pels. “It makes sense that they got involved. They were the only ones their age there.”
Before the curtain rises, he talks about his life. First about his parents: his father from Beemster and his mother from Flanders. “She came to the Netherlands for love.” Then about his sisters, both younger than him. And about love in his own life. More about that later. That love is one of the five benchmarks that he highlights in this episode of Key moments .
Key moment 1
Day: a summer day in 2017
The place: during a driving lesson in a training car
Deciding not to study after high school, let’s get to work first
“As a child I was always involved with music and theater. I made performances in our garden with my best friend. When I was 11 years old, I went to grammar school at the Jan van Egmond College in Purmerend. There I wrote and performed performances and gained experience as a director. I played the piano and liked to play the drums. By the time I took my exams, I was struggling with my college choice. I wanted something with theater and music, but I couldn’t figure out what was best for me. I come from a family of furniture makers and fruit growers. All practical people. They said: ‘Go do something with your hands’.
I remember making the decision during a driving lesson: I wasn’t going to study for a while, but first wanted to make performances myself, with local companies. This way I could gain practical experience and also continue to live at home for a while. I liked that, because I have always felt strongly connected to my family and friends from the region.”
Key moment 2
Day: February 17, 2021
The place: conservatory Amsterdam
To the conservatory in Amsterdam, and away again
“After two years of theater practice, I was accepted at the conservatory in Amsterdam. There I did singing and trained as a music teacher. Although I found the content educational, I did not enjoy the conservatory. The theater attracted. But I was ashamed to say that. When you know that there are tons of people queuing for a place at the conservatory, you feel guilty if you do have a place there and want to pass it up. Crying, I told my best friend. Because it was such a discharge, I remember the date.”
I wanted to transfer to Codarts, a musical theater training course in Rotterdam. But I didn’t dare tell my parents. My choice for the conservatory had already been so complicated. Even at the conservatory itself, I kept it to myself that I wanted to leave. When I went to Rotterdam for the auditions, I called in sick. I only confessed it when I was sure that I had been accepted at Codarts.”
Key moment 3
Day: April 7, 2020
The place: a spark ignited at a performance in Purmerend in 2018, but things will get serious in 2020
Love
“Yes, love. Her name is Naomi Vis and she is a dancer. We met when we worked on a performance together in 2018. She did the choreography, I directed. A chemistry was created that cannot be explained. At first we revolved around each other for a few years, in 2020 it became official. It works between us because we are opposites. I’m not very organized, she is a practical person. I often take a curve around something, she goes straight to her goal. Of course, it also helps that we both know what it’s like to work in the spotlight. Then you know the creative process and you understand the pressure of expectations and the relief of applause.”
Key moment 4
Day: December 15, 2023
The place: at Codarts Rotterdam training
A video with his song This Must Be Said becomes a hit on the internet
“I am now in the third year of Codarts and live in a student flat in Rotterdam. I wrote a song for a school assignment. The lyrics came to me in a fit of negativity. A friend’s brother had died in a traffic accident, the escalating violence in Israel concerned me, the indifference towards slave labor in Qatar bothered me and the election results also made me worried. The world became very difficult for me on all fronts. I devoted a lot of words to that in one evening. The next evening I refined those sentences, with the approach ‘everything can turn out fine again’. I received positive reactions to it at school.
My teacher had agreed with the municipality of Rotterdam that I would sing that song at a Christmas dinner for the council members, but it was canceled at the last minute. They didn’t dare. To do something with it, I then put the song on Instagram. That caused a storm that still leaves me speechless. It has now been viewed almost a million times online. Well-known names such as Carice van Houten and Jochem Myjer were enthusiastic. I also received offers from all sides to sing the song at events.”
Key moment 5
Day: February 26
The place: the theater of Amstelveen.
The music performance Yours Anne premieres
“At school I heard that they were looking for young actors for a theater tour for this play about Anne Frank. I submitted a video and was chosen for the role of Peter van Pels. He was 15 years old when he went into hiding with his parents in the Secret Annex. The two families spent more than two years together there. In Anne’s diary, Peter comes across as a quiet, insecure boy. When Anne approaches him, he is at first unreachable. Later something develops between the two.
At first I wondered whether heavy subjects such as the persecution of the Jews and the hiding of the Jews were suitable for musical theater. But as soon as I read the script and when we started playing it, I was convinced that it is actually a good way to draw attention to discrimination and oppression. So don’t expect musical situations with exuberant singing and dancing. The songs and the playing are very subdued. They draw you into the depressed atmosphere that hung in the Secret Annex and also mention the optimism and hope that Anne often described in her diaries.
We will tour the country with this performance until June. For me it is a school internship. At the same time, it is a great experience to work with such experienced colleagues, in such a meaningful performance.” What are your future plans? “Doing things that make me happy.”
IN BRIEF
Sem Konijn (1999) grew up in Zuidoostbeemster and attended grammar school in Purmerend. He is a third-year student at the Codarts theater program in Rotterdam. The video of his self-written song became available on the internet This Must Be Said posted was viewed almost a million times. Sem lives in a student flat in Rotterdam. Now he plays the role of Peter van Pels in the theater performance Yours Anne , on March 7 in Drachten, March 21 in Emmeloord, April 5 in Winschoten, April 6 in Emmen, May 10 in Leeuwarden, May 11 in Groningen and May 12 in Meppel.