A regal presence

Climb every mountain

Chen is not afraid that she may be pigeonholed as a television actress. While her biggest exposure is from television drama series, she sees TV, film and stage as different platforms with much in common. "I'll always have a special place in my heart for stage," she says, partly because of her dance background and partly because of her family influence－h(huán)er father is a dancer, her mother a musician and her husband a noted pianist.

Chen appeared in the 2015 Matt Damon movie The Martian. It was a small but eye-catching role. Even though her exposure on the big screen has been limited, a cause of head-scratching in previous days, she has come to terms that her rich television experience has been very rewarding and paved the way for a possible venture into films when good roles come her way.

Recently, she was spotted in Wuzhen during the famed theater festival. She has Sunrise and Jane Eyre under her theatrical belt and when the right role comes she says she will jump at it.

Of all the actresses she looks up to, 71-year-old British actress Helen Mirren is her favorite, "for maintaining her vitality and her dedication to the art."

Mirren also helps remove the baggage that ageism may plague actresses of a certain age, says Chen.

Cate Blanchett is another of her role models, for her versatility in taking on widely diverging roles and for her independence that she projects as a woman and an artist.

"It is encouraging to see these artists achieving such heights and making it possible for others to aim high," Chen says.

Chen may be television royalty, but she has a higher goal in the pantheon of arts.