Lights, Camera, Action! An Exclusive Interview with Actor Egor Kutenkov

Who among us hasn’t dreamed of becoming an actor? For some, this profession remains an unattainable fantasy. Others, however, take their destiny into their own hands. Egor Kutenkov, who played the lead role in the Russian series “The Magnificent Five,” shared theatrical life hacks, insights into the acting profession, and his impressions of Minsk with “City of Women.”

On the Beginnings of a Career

For me, enrolling in theater school was a logical conclusion to my childhood. I mainly sang. In the 9th grade, I started attending a theater school, and then I entered a theater institute. Although I can’t say that I had any clear consciousness about it. In school, I didn’t see myself as an actor—it was just a hobby. But my passion eventually grew into a profession. Were there any fears at the beginning of the journey? Everything was more related to teenage insecurity, complexes, age, and not accepting myself in the mirror.

On Balancing Work and Family

A career is always very important for a man. Although, probably, it is also important for a woman. But in the same “Bible,” a woman is saved through childbirth. And a man, if he doesn’t succeed in life, will remain a failure. A career means a lot. But the main thing is family.

My wife knew who she was marrying. Besides, spontaneous work rarely comes up. My wife is wise; she understands that if work appears, I have to be there. But if it’s something non-essential, I make the decision: I choose in favor of the family. Even when choosing work, I still choose the family. Because today’s work will bring tomorrow’s and provide for my family, my children. This is my choice. There’s no need to avoid this.

Honestly, there is occasionally a desire to change professions. But people get tired of everything, even their favorite profession. Sometimes, I want to quit everything. But this desire doesn’t turn into action. Although at one point, in the 3rd or 4th year, I realized: if I hadn’t gone into acting, I would have wanted to be a surgeon. That’s also a very cool profession. A person who really helps others, brings them benefit.

On Working in Theater and Theatrical Tricks

On average, I perform in 10 plays per month. This number varies depending on the month and repertoire. Many ask: do I believe in omens related to the profession? I don’t believe in any omens. You just need to get in the mood before the performance, turn yourself on, your imagination—and go.

The most effective way to deal with excitement before going on stage is concentration. For example, a surgeon before an operation must be maximally focused to perform it well. And all emotions, “will it work or not,” “I’m so scared,” “I’m so afraid”—none of this should be there.

An actor, like a surgeon, performs an operation. Only not on the body, but on the soul.

A large volume of text can only be memorized through repetition. The word “rehearsal” comes from “repeat.” If you repeat something 100 times, you will remember anything. If you repeat it 400 times, it will be brilliant.

If we talk about colleagues in the theater, then basically, we have the same relationships as people in any other profession. The theater is a small model of the world. As a rule, the relationships are friendly and camaraderie. People are ready to support, help, and bail each other out.

On Theater and Cinema

Theater and cinema differ from each other as much as big tennis and table tennis. But I find both interesting. The theater interests me as a platform for improvement and constant training. In the theater, you work like in big tennis: a lot of load, a large amount of energy that you open in yourself and develop to take a large hall. In the theater, there is an opportunity for a deeper development of both the entire performance and specifically your role. Actors, scenographers, costume designers interact and work together more. As for cinema, it’s the opposite. Less energy is spent, but an actor who is internally powerful looks much more interesting on screen. Therefore, cinema is like table tennis. The focus there is on details. In cinema, you are a separate element. When you come to the first shooting day, you don’t know how your colleagues prepared for this work. At the moment, I am a little closer to cinema. It just happened that way.

Recently, the series “The Magnificent Five” was released, where I played Lieutenant Vladimir. We have a lot of differences: for example, my character is very good with computers, he is an IT specialist, a cool programmer. And I only have basic computer skills, I don’t know programming languages. I would never agree to a role that is very similar to a character from GTA games, where the character runs, kills passers-by, and takes their money. I wouldn’t want to play such a negative character under any circumstances.

On Future Roles and Inspirations

I believe that my main role is ahead. There is still room to grow. I would like to play a role that would motivate other people to do good deeds, kindness, and belief in themselves. To help a person realize themselves as a human being.

Among contemporary Russian directors, I like Boris Khlebnikov (“Arrhythmia”), Zhora Kryzhovnikov (“Bitterly!”, “New Year Trees”, “The Best Day”), Natalia Meshchaninova (“Heart of the World”), Nikolai Lebedev (“Legend No. 17”), Vasily Sigarev (“Country 03”). Generally, there are many good directors now with whom it would be interesting to work. Among foreign directors, I can highlight Damien Chazelle (“Whiplash”, “La La Land”), Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”). I would also like to work with Woody Allen. And also, for example, with the Korean director Kim Ki-duk. I am attracted to Jackie Chan’s principles and work ethic. I would even say his obsession with work. It would be useful to learn from him. Working with a director is always a joint journey into something new. With someone, it’s interesting to climb the mountains, with someone, it’s interesting to descend into the depths.

On Belarus

I was in Minsk in December when I came with the St. Petersburg State Drama Theater “Comedian’s Shelter.” We performed the tragicomedy “No Tolstoy” at the Yanka Kupala Theater. We had a tour of the capital. I have a very good impression of Belarus. It is a country where there is order, everything is well-maintained, everything is in its place, everything is well-organized and works like a single mechanism. And things are done as they should be. And the order is not only on the street but in general, in the country.