(born 9 February 1981) is a Japanese entertainer, former singer, and musical theater actress. She is affiliated with

Rising Production , operating as Rising Production, is a Japanese talent agency. It largely works with musical talent, but has branched out in recent years to include actors and comedians. The company came into prominence after the widespread successes of musical ...

History

Rina Chinen took lessons as a child from the Okinawa Actors School. By the time she reached junior high, she relocated to

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

due to her father's work, but she continued to take lessons at the Okinawa Actors School during the weekend. Chinen moved to Tokyo shortly after graduating from high school.

Music career

In October 1996, Chinen made her music debut with the single "Do-Do for Me". A year later, her second single "Precious Delicious" earned her the Best New Artist Award at the 39th Japan Record Awards, with her third single, "Pinch ~Love Me Deeper~", being used as the third and final ending theme for the anime series, ''

Kodomo no Omocha , also known as ''Kodocha'' for short, is a Japanese manga series by Miho Obana. The series was adapted as an OVA by J.C. Staff and released on December 16, 1995 by Shueisha under their Ribon Video label. An anime television series was p ...

'' that same year. In 1998, her fifth single "Wing" peaked at No. 5 on

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in ...

's singles chart, becoming her biggest hit. On 15 July 2001, Chinen performed at the Music Fest Peace of Ryukyu, a music festival featuring Okinawan artists. As her pop music activity decreased, she pursued a career in musical acting in 2003. On 21 October 2021, Sony Music Entertainment Japan released all 81 of Chinen's songs internationally on digital streaming platforms to commemorate the 25th anniversary of her debut.

Acting career

Television

In July 1996, Chinen made her acting debut in the drama series . In 2002, Chinen appeared in the drama series . On 29 July 2020, Chinen was announced as part of the cast of the Toei

tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live action film or television drama that makes heavy use of practical special effects. ''Tokusatsu'' entertainment mainly refers to science fiction, war, fantasy, or horror media featuring such technology but is som ...

drama '' Kamen Rider Saber''.

Musical theatre

Chinen made her musical theatre debut in the Tokyo production of ''

Jekyll & Hyde ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' is a 1886 Gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates a series of strange occurrences between his old ...

'' in December 2003. A year later, she starred in the localized adaptations of ''

Miss Saigon ''Miss Saigon'' is a stage musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's 1904 opera ''Madame Butterfly'', and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed roma ...

'' and '' Fiddler on the Roof''. In 2005, Chinen appeared in the Tokyo production of ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

''. She has since taken multiple roles for ''Miss Saigon'' and ''Les Misérables'' until 2022. Chinen is scheduled to play Winifred Banks in the Japanese stage production of ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'' in 2022.

Personal life

On 10 August 2005, Chinen at the age of 24 registered her marriage to model Kentaro Nakamura, aged 22. The couple were expecting a child at the time she was cast in ''Jekyll & Hyde''; her part was consequently reassigned to Ranran Suzuki. Chinen announced she planned on taking maternity leave after the drama finished its season, and would continue working after becoming a mother. Chinen gave birth to a baby boy on 11 March 2006. Chinen and Nakamura divorced on 15 March 2007. Nakamura was arrested on drug charges in June of that year. Chinen married actor Yoshio Inoue on 27 July 2016. She gave birth to her second boy on 12 June 2018. On 9 December 2019, Chinen announced that she had passed the high school graduation certification exam.

Discography

Singles

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Videography

Filmography

TV

*''Gakkō no Kaidan R'' (

Kansai TV JODX-DTV, virtual channel 8 ( UHF digital channel 17), branded as or , is the Kansai region key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and Fuji Network System (FNS), operated by the . Kansai TV is a company affiliated in Hankyu Hanshin Holdin ...

, 1996) – Kazuko Miyata *''Shin-D'' – "Love Blood" (Kansai TV, 1997) *''Five'' (

NTV NTV may refer to: Television * NTV (Bangladesh), a Bengali-language satellite television channel in Bangladesh * NTV (India), Telugu regional channel * NTV (Kenya) * NTV (Mongolia), a television channel based in Mongolia * NTV (Newport Televis ...

, 1997) – Madoka *''Yume no California'' ( TBS, 2002) *''Kochira Hon Ikegami Sho'' (TBS, 2002—2005) – Atsuko Shindō *''Asami Mitsuhiko Series 19: Yuta ga Aishita Tantei'' (

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network S ...

, 2004) – Kaori *''Kyoto Chiken no Onna'' (

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Comp ...

, 2010) – Kumi Sekimoto *''SP ~ Keishichō Keigo-ka'' (TV Asahi, 2012) – Yuri Sudō *''First Class'' (Fuji TV, 2014) – Madoka Ōkubo *''Lunch Detective ~ Koi to Gourmet to Nazotoki to ~'' ( YTV, 2020) – Ritsuko Shiraishi *'' Kamen Rider Saber'' (TV Asahi, 2020) – Sophia

TV animation

*''

Star Twinkle PreCure is a Japanese magical girl anime series by Toei Animation. It is the sixteenth installment in the ''Pretty Cure'' franchise, and the last series released in the Heisei period. and the sixteenth installment of the franchise, featuring the four ...

'' (2019) – Mary Anne

Film

*''Seishun Mandala!'' (2010) – Miki *''Saber + Zenkaiger: Superhero Senki'' (2021) - Sophia

Film animation

* '' Doraemon: Nobita and the Winged Braves'' (2001) – Tsubakuro * '' Star Twinkle PreCure the Movie: These Feelings Within the Song of Stars'' (2019) – Mary Anne知念里奈、声優で映画プリキュア初参加　主題歌も担当「どんな形で表現できるかワクワク」
ORICON NEWS,2019年7月9日

Dubbing

*'' The Star'' (2017) – Mary

Musicals

* ''

'' – Emma Carew (December 2003) * ''

'' – Kim (2004–2014), Ellen (2016–2022) * '' Fiddler on the Roof'' – Hodel (2004) * ''

'' –

Cosette Cosette () is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo and in the many adaptations of the story for stage, film, and television. Her birth name, Euphrasie, is only mentioned briefly. As the orphaned child of an u ...

(2005),

Éponine Éponine Thénardier (; ), also referred to as the "Jondrette girl", is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo. The character is introduced as a spoiled and pampered child, but appears later in the novel as a r ...

(2007–2009),

Fantine Fantine (French pronunciation: ) is a fictional character in Victor Hugo's 1862 novel ''Les Misérables''. She is a young '' grisette'' in Paris who becomes pregnant by a rich student. After he abandons her, she is forced to look after their chil ...

(2011–2021) * '' Rudolf'' – Princess Stephanie of Belgium (2008) * '' Dance of the Vampires'' – Sarah (2009–2011) * ''

She Loves Me ''She Loves Me'' is a musical with a book by Joe Masteroff, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. The musical is the third adaptation of the 1937 play '' Parfumerie'' by Hungarian playwright Miklós László, following the 194 ...

'' – Ilona Ritter (2009) * ''Oh! Tabaruzaka'' – Fujimaki (2010) * ''Himeyuri'' – Kimi (2010) * ''SHOW-ismIV TATTOO 14'' – Guest Sky (2013) * ''Ludwig B'' – Eleanore von Breuning (2014) * ''

Radiant Baby ''Radiant Baby'' is a musical about Keith Haring, who was an artist and social activist in New York City. The music was composed by Debra Barsha, with lyrics by Ira Gasman, Stuart Ross, and Debra Barsha. It was based on ''Keith Haring: The Auth ...

'' – Amanda (2016) * ''

'' – Winfred Banks (2022)

References

External links

*
Official profile
at Rising Production *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chinen, Rina 1981 births Living people Japanese women pop singers Japanese idols Japanese women singer-songwriters Japanese musical theatre actresses Musicians from Okinawa Prefecture People from Naha Japanese Christians Sony Music Entertainment Japan artists 20th-century Japanese women singers 20th-century Japanese singers 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese singers