Nelson Chia () is a

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and lecturer. He is the co-founder of Nine Years Theatre.

Early life and education

Chia studied at

The Chinese High School The Chinese High School () was an independent school in Singapore offering secondary education. The school merged with Hwa Chong Junior College on 1 January 2005 to form the integrated Hwa Chong Institution. Founded on 21 March 1919, The Chine ...

and

Hwa Chong Junior College The Hwa Chong Junior College () was a junior college in Singapore offering pre-university education. The school merged with The Chinese High School on 1 January 2005 to form the integrated Hwa Chong Institution. History Founding Hwa Chong Juni ...

. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies from

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...

and a master's degree in Theatre Arts (Directing) from

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

Career

Chia has been working in theatre both as an actor and director since 1994. Chia's first major TV role in the drama Together Whenever, which was aired on

SPH MediaWorks Channel U Channel U (marketed as U頻道, formerly named 优频道) is a Singaporean free-to-air television channel owned by Mediacorp. It was launched on 6 May 2001 by SPH MediaWorks. On 1 January 2005, the channel was transferred to Mediacorp after a ...

, alongside Erica Lee. He briefly headed the Department of Theatre in

Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA); (Standard Chinese: 南洋艺术学院; ms, Akademi Seni Halus Nanyang; ta, நன்யாங் அகாடமி ஆஃப் ஃபைன் ஆர்ட்ஸ்) is a publicly-funded post-secondary ar ...

, but later left the post in order to devote more time to his craft. He is currently an adjunct lecturer with the Department of Theatre in Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts as well as the Theatre Studies Program in National University of Singapore. He is the associate artistic director at Toy Factory Productions (formerly Toy Factory Theatre Ensemble), an Associate Artist with

The Substation The Substation (Chinese: 电力站) is Singapore's first independent contemporary arts centre. It was founded in 1990 by Kuo Pao Kun. The Substation is centrally located in the city's civic district and was the first building under the Nati ...

and the founding member of a collaborative ensemble A Group Of People. Chia founded Mandarin theatre company Nine Years Theatre in 2012.

Personal life

Chia is married to fellow theatre practitioner and co-founder of Nine Years Theatre Mia Chee, and has two twin daughters (born 2004).

Theatre

As director

* ''

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead ''Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead'' is an absurdist, existential tragicomedy by Tom Stoppard, first staged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1966. The play expands upon the exploits of two minor characters from Shakespeare's ''Hamle ...

'', Goldsmiths College, London, 2000 * ''

Animal Farm ''Animal Farm'' is a beast fable, in the form of satirical allegorical novella, by George Orwell, first published in England on 17 August 1945. It tells the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer, hoping to crea ...

'' (in Mandarin, 動物農莊),

The Theatre Practice ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

, Victoria Theatre, Singapore, 2002 * '' Oleanna'' (in Mandarin, 奧里安娜), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 2002 * ''Mergers And Wills'' (in Mandarin, 暗流胸涌), (as co-Director), Toy Factory Productions, Singapore, 2004 * ''First Light'', Toy Factory Productions, Esplanade Theatre Studio, Singapore, 2008 * ''LIV - Full Frontal'', A Group of People, Esplanade Theatre Studio,

Singapore Arts Festival Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) is an annual arts festival held in Singapore. It is organised bArts House Limitedfor the National Arts Council. The festival is usually held in mid-year for a stretch of one month and incorporates th ...

, Singapore, 2009 *''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'', Nine Years Theatre, Esplanade Theatre Studio, Huayi Festival 2012, Singapore 2012 *''Twelve Angry Men'', Nine Years Theatre, Esplanade Theatre Studio, Huayi Festival 2013, Singapore 2013 *''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'', Nine Years Theatre, Dom Pedro V Theatre, Macau Arts Festival 2013, Singapore 2013

As an actor

* ''Lao Jiu'' (in Mandarin, 老九), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 1990 * ''Titoudao'' (in Mandarin, 剃頭刀), Toy Factory Productions, Singapore, 1994 * ''The Coffin is Too Big For The Hole'' (in Mandarin, 棺材太大洞太小), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 1995 * ''The Soldier and His Wife'' (in Mandarin, 都是當兵惹得禍), The Theatre Practice, Fort Canning Drama Centre, Singapore, 1996 * ''Love A La Zen'' (in Mandarin, 愛情觀自在), The Theatre Practice, Victoria Theatre, Singapore, 1999 * ''

A Midsummer Night’s Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' (in Mandarin, 仲夏夜之夢), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 1999 * ''Hundred Years In Waiting'' (in Mandarin, 百年的等待), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 2001 * '' The Island'' (in Mandarin, 島), (as John), The Theatre Practice, Singapore, 2002 * ''

'' (in Mandarin, 動物農莊), The Theatre Practice, Victoria Theatre, Singapore, 2002 * ''Mad Phoenix'' (in Mandarin, 南海十三郎), (as Title Role), Toy Factory Productions, Esplanade Theatre Studio, Huayi Festival, Singapore, 2003 * ''Porcelain'', (as John Lee), Toy Factory Productions, Singapore, 2005 * ''Big Fool Lee'' (in Mandarin and Cantonese, 李大傻), Toy Factory Productions, Singapore, 2005 * ''Nanjing: 1937'', The Substation, The Substation SeptFest, Singapore, 2007 * ''Nanjing: 1937 Phase II'', The Substation, The Substation SeptFest, Singapore, 2008 * ''Own Time Own Target'',

W!LD RICE W!LD RICE, founded in 2000 by Ivan Heng, is a professional theatre company in Singapore. In 2019, the company established a permanent performance venue at Funan Mall. History The first show by W!LD RICE was held at Jubilee Hall in Raffles Hotel ...

, Drama Centre Theatre, Singapore, 2009

Filmography

;Film ;Television ;2006 * ''Crossfire'' 針鋒相對 (forum programme, in Mandarin), (as host),

Mediacorp Channel U Channel U (marketed as U頻道, formerly named 优频道) is a Singaporean free-to-air television channel owned by Mediacorp. It was launched on 6 May 2001 by SPH MediaWorks. On 1 January 2005, the channel was transferred to Mediacorp after a ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chia, Nelson Singaporean male television actors Singaporean people of Chinese descent Male actors of Chinese descent Living people National University of Singapore alumni Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Hwa Chong Junior College alumni Hwa Chong Institution alumni Year of birth missing (living people)