Singaporean playwright Jonathan Lim's mysterious death at 50

One of the leading figures in the literary scene in Singapore, the playwright Jonathan Lim, passed away at the age of 50 on 23 January 2024. He is considered one of the leading figures in Singapore’s literary and theatre scene due to his contributions over the years, and his passing is greatly grieved by fellow key figures in the country’s arts scene and many others.

All images in this gallery are from ltcjon / Instagram unless otherwise stated.

According to Mothership, Jonathan Lim Tze-Chien, also known as Jonathan Lim, was not just a playwright based in Singapore, but also a “singer, actor, director of plays, revues, videos, and musicals”.

According to an interview done with the Singapore theatre company W!ld Rice, Jonathan Lim was immensely involved in the scriptwriting scene and was also known for reinventing classic theatrical scripts like Charles Dickens’ ‘A Chrismas Carol’, by adding more local elements to it to become ‘A $ingapore Carol’!

Channel News Asia reports that Jonathan Lim had been involved in writing pantomimes for W!ld Rice, namely ‘Oi! Sleeping Beauty’ and ‘Aladdin’, other than his work on ‘A $ingapore Carol’.

Image: WILD RICE / Facebook

The same article from Channel News Asia also notes that Jonathan Lim was also remembered as a standout performer with W!ld Rice in some of their productions, which included ‘Aladdin’ which he wrote for, and ‘Second Link, The Magic Fundoshi’.

Image: WILD RICE / Facebook

The same interview with W!ld Rice also gave information that Jonathan Lim was once involved in ‘Gurmit’s World’, the precursor show that then later “gave birth to Phua Chu Kang”, that was also known as one of Singapore’s most iconic shows to date!

Jonathan Lim is most known for his parody sketch show, ‘Chestnuts’, which is also known as “Singapore’s longest-running parody series”, reports Channel News Asia.

Channel News Asia states that ‘Chestnuts’ ran from 1996 until 2022. The show was best known for satirising local and international news, including gender inequality in Singapore, which AWARE Singapore, a non-profit organisation that campaigns for gender equality, is grateful for Jonathan Lim for including in ‘Chestnuts’, according to their social media memorial post.

Prior to his passing, some of Jonathan Lim’s most recent endeavours include co-hosting the YouTube show ‘Supernatural Confessions’ on Fridays with the Singaporean author Eugene Tay, and running guided tours under the ‘Supernatural Confessions’ brand.

According to The Straits Times, Jonathan Lim’s death was a huge shock to his family and friends and the theatre community, as there “had been no outward signs of illness”. He was found unconscious in his flat on January 23 and pronounced dead after.

Jonathan Lim’s passing is one that is greatly mourned in Singapore’s arts scene due to his contributions over the years. Some of Singapore’s most prominent literary figures, such as the writers Gwee Li Sui and Ng Yi Sheng, have taken to commemorating Jonathan Lim’s life and works on their respective social media pages.