The Sunera Foundation began work in 1997, following a series of collaborations with the Sunethra Bandaranaike Trust.
Sunera’s founders, Rohana Deva and Wolfgang Stange invited Sunethra Bandaranaike to see some of the work they were doing with persons living with disability.
Sunethra used her love of the performing arts, which she sponsored through the Sunethra Bandaranaike Trust, to take their work to an entirely new level.
In 1998, the relationship between Deva, Stange and the Sunethra Bandaranaike Trust culminated in the formation of the Butterflies Theatre Company and the first full scale production, Butterflies Will Always Fly.
Following the success of Butterflies, the Sunera Foundation was officially registered in April 2000 as a charitable trust dedicated to improving the lives of persons living with disability in Sri Lanka.
The popularity of Butterflies gave rise to the second production Flowers Will Always Bloom, which addressed the futility of war and the need for co-existence.
Even more popular than Butterflies, Flowers performed to international acclaim in London (2001), Brisbane (2001) and Delhi (2003).
Flowers was followed by Journey to the Subconscious (2002) , Swinging Times: A Fairy Tale for Adults (2003), Turtles Will Never Fly (2004), A Prayer for Peace (2005) and The Last Two Minutes (2006).
In September 2004, Wolfgang Stange left Sunera Foundation to continue his work with persons living with disability in England through his own AMICI Dance Theatre Company. Ramani Damayanthi came on board as Assistant Creative Director.
Today, Sunera Foundation fulfils an important role in Sri Lankan society through its promotion of diversity and the celebration of difference.
Through our work, we strive to integrate persons living with disability into communities of their peers and into the broader Sri Lankan society.
Sunera Foundation Fact Sheet (downloadable .doc file)