Dmitry has excellent education at school and at the acting department of the Oryol Institute of Arts and Culture, many excellent roles and dozens of prestigious theater awards. The actor became famous after participating in the first television casting among professional actors "Find the Beast" (TVC), where Ermak took second place and received an invitation to join the troupe of the musical "Beauty and the Beast" for the role of Lumiere. A little later, Dmitry is waiting for another equally tempting offer - the role of Fernand in the musical "Monte Cristo". The actor's play deserves the attention it deserves, and in the following years Dmitry is in great demand. Serials, films, musicals - today Yermak's portfolio is vast and multifaceted. One of the actor's recent works is the main role in the legendary musical "The Phantom of the Opera", in which Dmitry plays the main role. It is about her that will be discussed today.
You already have a wealth of acting experience behind you. What does the role of the phantom of the opera mean to you?
I have been waiting for her for a very long time. In the previous project (the musical The Little Mermaid. - Ed.) I played Sebastian. An excellent role, for which I was even nominated for the Golden Mask, but, of course, I wanted more serious material. Having left the drama theater for musicals, I felt a lack of psychology in what I was doing. And I got it. The ghost can compete with any dramatic role.
How much more difficult is it to play when half your face is hidden by a mask? Surely it is impossible to express all those emotions that other actors demonstrate with facial expressions, eyes
I am not one of those who complain about my plight. Of course, there are certain technical subtleties. But the director and I found a good move: the word means a lot here - how you pronounce it, how you sing it. The mask is not the worst thing yet. In the second act there is a scene of Don Juan, where a huge canopy also appears, hiding the entire body. Only the brushes are visible. The stage is built on them.
Scene from the musical "The Phantom of the Opera"
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Before starting rehearsals, you attended the British production of The Phantom of the Opera, visited the legendary opera house in Paris. What especially helped to get used to the image?
I initially knew that I had to go only from myself, from my inner feelings. The most important thing in understanding a character in theater is deep analysis. Analysis of his actions, history. In the case of The Phantom of the Opera, the music that Webber wrote helps a lot. The deepest meaning is hidden in every note of his works. We also have an amazing translator. I was amazed when I found out that he did 70% accurate translation of all texts. If you take the English and Russian versions, you will understand that they are practically the same. You understand how difficult it is.
Dmitry Ermak, performer of the role of the Phantom of the Opera
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The Phantom of the Opera is a production with a mystical plot. Often, actors choose not to get involved in such roles. Are you a superstitious person?
Not at all! I even forbid my wife to believe in all these signs and other nonsense. I know for sure: if a dog howls at the moon - this is not to the dead, it just wants to howl at the moon. Although I love mystical films. My favorite is The Others with Nicole Kidman.
Soon, by the way, another mystical picture is coming out - "Paris: City of the Dead". You, too, were in those catacombs where the plot takes place?
Yes, I will definitely go to watch it! Judging by the trailer, there is exactly the same footage as I had on my phone after that descent. I went there as a tourist: I took pictures with skulls, touched everything. And then I just realized where I was. Probably, the journalists and the large team who were there with me did not allow me to focus on what this place really is. If I were alone, I would have felt more: burials that are over 200 years old, 6 million people, 300 kilometers of tunnels … Realization came later.
Photo: Alexey Spodyneyko