Intercultural Theatre Institute Turns 25 With New Team and Plans

The school is targeting a $10 million endowment fund and a master's degree certification

- Ong Sor Fern

If turning 25 heralds a quarter-life crisis, the Intercultural Theatre Institute (ITI) is meeting the challenge head on.

Founded in February 2000 by late theatre doyen Kuo Pao Kun and director Thirunalan Sasitharan as the Theatre Training & Research Programme (TTRP), the school has had its fair share of existential crises.

As Mr Sasitharan says, the school's survival has been a matter of sheer will. The 67-year-old, the public face of the school, has already stepped back from management of the curriculum and, by the end of 2026, will focus on strategy, research and "telling the ITI story".

Core members of the founding team – general manager Goh Su Lin, director of development Josephine Tan and director of administration Hannah Tan – have either retired or are leaving.

A new team is stepping up. Actress Koh Wan Ching, 45, was appointed head of acting in 2023 and executive director Justin Deimen, 40, who has a long track record in film producing and media financing, joined in November 2024. Mr Andrew Nai, 51, director of private equity at Aura Group, has been on the ITI board since 2022 and took over as chairman in April 2024.

Mr Deimen and Mr Nai are focused on the administrative and financial aspects of the school, while Ms Koh, as Mr Sasitharan characterises, is "the beating heart of ITI", overseeing its three-year training programme.

Mr Nai wants to raise enough for a $10 million endowment fund over the next five years. With the Government's Cultural Matching Fund, this could mean $20 million for the school, which currently runs on a shoestring budget of $2 million a year.

About 30 per cent is funded by the National Arts Council (NAC), while the rest is covered by school fees and donations. This budget sustains between 12 and 14 administrative, marketing and teaching staff, as well as the current cohort of 13 students.