Rina Chinen (知念 里奈, Chinen Rina) (born 9 February 1981) is a Japanese entertainer, former singer, and musical theater actress. She is affiliated with Rising Production.
History
Rina Chinen took lessons as a child from the Okinawa Actors School. By the time she reached junior high, she relocated to Osaka 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 that same year. In 1998, her fifth single "Wing" peaked at No. 5 on Oricon'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.
In July 1996, Chinen made her acting debut in the drama series Gakkō no Kaidan R (学校の怪談R, School Kaidan R). In 2002, Chinen appeared in the drama series Yume no California (夢のカリフォルニア, California Dreamin).
Chinen made her musical theatre debut in the Tokyo production of Jekyll & Hyde in December 2003. A year later, she starred in the localized adaptations of Miss Saigon and Fiddler on the Roof. In 2005, Chinen appeared in the Tokyo production of Les Misérables. She has since taken multiple roles for Miss Saigon and Les Misérables until 2022.[3] Chinen is scheduled to play Winifred Banks in the Japanese stage production of Mary Poppins in 2022.[4]
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.[5][6] Chinen gave birth to a baby boy on 11 March 2006.[7] Chinen and Nakamura divorced on 15 March 2007. Nakamura was arrested on drug charges in June of that year.[8]
Chinen married actor Yoshio Inoue on 27 July 2016.[9] She gave birth to her second boy on 12 June 2018.[10]
