#54: Nathania Ong: First Singaporean to Lead the West End, And She Almost Gave Up

Nathania Ong is the first Singaporean to lead both Les Misérables and Hamilton on London’s West End.

But before any of that, she was 18, alone in a foreign city, rejected by every drama school she applied to in a single week.

This is a story about the years nobody sees.. the flight home after every door closes, and the quiet season where you have to decide: Do I keep going, or do I let this go?

In this conversation, Nathania opens up about:

• the rejections that almost broke her

• the stage fright she developed after going viral

• ⁠the best friend who talked her back from the edge

• and the philosophy that has carried her through every closed door since

“Sometimes it’s not no. Sometimes it’s not yet. And what is for you will not pass you by.”

Chapters

• 00:00:00 Introduction
• 00:01:29 Meet Nathania Ong: From Singapore to the West End
• 00:02:35 Growing Up in a House Full of Voices
• 00:07:11 The First Win That Changed Everything
• 00:10:00 Losing Singing — and Finding Herself Again
• 00:13:57 Five Rejections in One Week
• 00:18:00 “I Almost Gave Up”
• 00:19:47 The Second Chance She Almost Didn’t Take
• 00:25:55 Her Greatest Triumph Wasn’t Success
• 00:28:10 What Keeps You Going When Nothing Does
• 00:29:18 Why Rejection Feels So Personal
• 00:32:22 Becoming Éponine — And Redefining the Role
• 00:37:00 When Success Brings Fear
• 00:38:28 Stage Fright, Anxiety, and Finding Ground Again
• 00:41:04 Pre-Show Rituals & Becoming the Character
• 00:42:04 Creating Something Honest for Herself
• 00:43:33 What She’d Tell Her Younger Self
• 00:45:11 Advice for Anyone Chasing a Dream
• 00:45:38 Final Reflections

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Follow Nathania Ong here: https://www.instagram.com/nattyong/

Write in to the team at hello@rachreflects.com.