Pygmalion Dadakaridis went through an incredible transformation to meet the requirements of the role he fulfills in the theater production “The Whale“. The actor is almost unrecognizable in photos taken at the rehearsals, with the Alachouze brothers, who are behind this complete transformation, speaking exclusively to Live News.
“He didn’t gain a single kilo. During the summer we were looking for a way to make a costume like the one that won the Oscar and the actor and the make-up and transfer it to a theater context”, revealed Giorgos Alahouzos.
It is a work originally written in 2012 for the theater, but it was a great success worldwide in cinemas in 2022 when the film gave the Oscar for the first actor to the main actor Brendan Fraser.
The producers of the film even released a timelapse video of how they transformed the main character into a 270 kg overweight man. A transformation that our own Pygmalion Dadakaridis will try tonight on the program.
The special outfit and prosthetics
“In the film the actor did one shot, one shot and they took a break. He was so tired, but he also wore a cooling system inside his body. This possibility does not exist in the theatre. We had to find solutions, to do this theatrically and live in front of the audience”, said Giorgos Alahouzos.
The preparation requires at least an hour and a half to put on the costume and the prosthetics, which are disposable and must be made from scratch for each performance.
“Because we have made many mascots for teams, we applied a patent so that it can take air, breathe, be light,” said Mr. Alahouzos.
The difficulty of the undertaking is so great that it is enough to consider that only the extra arms made of silicone that reach up to the shoulder weigh more than two kilograms each.
“For us it was completely new to the theatre. Although we have been working in the field for 40 years, we have never done something like this before,” stressed Giorgos Alahouzos.
Tonight is the premiere of the show
Samuel De Hunter’s Oscar-winning masterpiece is a redemptive drama about a man falling into darkness and struggling with his demons.
Charlie is a self-destructive, obese English teacher who has lost all contact with the outside world and his desire to continue living.
“What I love about ‘The Whale’ is how a man turns to love and comes to the final task of almost ending his life and saying goodbye to his family before he leaves,” said the actor about the play.
Pygmalion Dadakaridis, in addition to the lead role, also took on the role of director in the show. The show will take place tonight at the New Academy.