JULIA'S STORY

Julia Gabriel (1951 - 2019) was the founder of Julia Gabriel Centre. Her journey into speech and drama began at the tender age of 11 in England, driven by the need to overcome her extreme shyness. Over time, attending classes unearthed a profound love for language and performance, and these experiences imbued her with the courage and confidence to express her ideas before an audience. By the time she completed her schooling, Julia had earned Silver and Gold Medals for public speaking and acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

In the 1970s, Julia initially relocated to Singapore with her family before returning to England to pursue her aspiration of becoming a speech and drama teacher. She obtained licentiate teaching diplomas from both the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the London College of Music. Returning to Singapore in 1983, she began teaching in a room at her home with 21 pupils - who were her own children, and her friends' children. One thing led to another by 1990, the Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama Centre was formed comprising a growing team of motivated, enthusiastic, specialist educators who have been chosen for their shared belief in her teaching philosophy and aims. Over the following years, this grew to become the Julia Gabriel Education group, which now encompasses Julia Gabriel Centre, Julia Gabriel Preschool and Chengzhu Mandarin Centre, all of which offer innovative communication, drama, speech and early childhood programmes.