Bright Ong
Singapore
Bright is a multidisciplinary performance-maker with an established and diverse practice in theatre and puppetry. Born in Malaysia, Bright now resides in Singapore and is an alumni of the Singapore Repertory Theatre’s Young Co. In his capacities as a director, actor, and puppetry creative, he has worked on numerous projects of vastly ranging styles involving the art of puppetry. His experiences range from film and television, to highly physical movement-based work, to pairing traditional art forms with contemporary puppets. An independent artist, he has worked with arts groups including Esplanade, Wild Rice, The Artground and Namhwa Opera. Most recently, he was also consulted for work on the Offaly Youth Arts Forum in Ireland.
He has been an adjunct lecturer for puppetry at LASALLE College of the Arts for the past five years and has conducted multiple workshops overseas – including Singapore’s first presentation at the renowned biennale, Pesta Boneka, in 2018. He has also performed at festivals including Imaginate 2019 (Edinburgh, Scotland), ASSITEJ Korea K-PAP 2020 (Seoul, Korea), the 100 and 100 More Festival and SIFA 2020 (Singapore).
As the Resident Director and Puppetry Supervisor for Ninjago: The Realm of Shadows, at Legoland Malaysia (2015 to 2018), the show was awarded the IAAPA (The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions) award for Best Theatrical Production 2016, edging over Disney and Universal Studios in that category. His commercial clients also include Transtudio (Indonesia) and Madame Tussauds (Singapore).
Bright is also an Associate Director with Five Stones Theatre, Associate Artist with Mascots and Puppets Specialists, and is a participant member of the Closed Community of Artists under The Paperboats Collective (Australia). This arm of his work reaffirms Bright’s belief in the power of theatre for young audiences. Moving forward, he is excited to bring puppetry into the digital realm – combining live-action puppetry, video gaming and choose-your-own-adventure storytelling.
