Kamal Sultan talks to Feras Ibrahim, one of the most promising Syrian actors of his generation Actor and producer Feras Ibrahim is an established star of Syrian drama, but his first kick at acting was in Egypt, where his mother came from. She had married his Syrian father while he was in Egypt to do his military service in the days of Egyptian-Syrian unification in the 1950s. Ibrahim was born in Al-Laziqiya, Syria in 1962 and raised in a family where his father was renowned for his oriental musical talent. He studied theatrical arts in Damascus before returning to Egypt to do a Masters degree in theatre studies at the Higher Institute for Theatrical Arts. Thus began Ibrahim's involvement in a number of Egyptian serials, among them Refaa El-Tahtawi directed by Nour El-Demerdash and The Horse directed by Sami Mohamed Ali. In 1989 he went back to Syria to act in a number of Syrian serials such as The Shackle by Ghassan Gabri and The Silk Chain by Haitham Haqi. Ibrahim has been back on the Egyptian screen again after his smashing success in Asmahan, where he personified the singer's brother Fouad. The serial was broadcast last year by several Arab satellite channels. This year he will appear alongside Safaa Abul-Soud, Khaled Zaki and Liqaa Swedan. In The Assassination of Shams, written by Mohsen El-Gallad and directed by Magdi Abu Emira, he will play the role of an Egyptian-American businessman who is recruited by an international trade organisation to steal the authorisation of a scientific discovery by an Egyptian scientist living in Moscow, played by Khaled Zaki. "This will be my first time to work with a prominent director like Magdi Abu Emira," Ibrahim told Al-Ahram Weekly. "This is the only thing that encouraged me to appear in the serial, because I had decided to save my energy and time for the coming serial on the life of the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish." The Assassination of Shams is Ibrahim's second cooperation as an actor with Egypt's Media City, an experience he describes as "unique". "It would be encouraging for any actor, and it paved the way for me in such an important serial like Darwish," he says. For the Darwish series, which is being written by Syrian novelist Hassan Youssef , who has written The Ceiling of the World, Ibrahim is immersed in reading the poet's biography and his poetry. However he has received harsh criticism on several websites for appearing in the serial. "This is very weird, because the scenario hasn't been completed yet, so what's the reason for this relentless criticism?" Ibrahim asks. "What is really funny is that this condemnation came shortly after I announced the idea of the production of the serial about the much loved Arab poet." The episodes of the series which have already been written were reviewed by the famous producer and Media City consultant Youssef Othman, who has produced more than 300 Egyptian and Arab drama series. Ibrahim believes that he is not the real target of the condemnation. "Actually, and after reading some of the items published on the Internet, I found out that some commentators really adored Darwish as a person and were afraid that there might be a poor personification of his character on the screen. On the other hand, there is this viewpoint that fears a discussion of the roots of the Palestinian-Israeli struggle and the history of the Palestinian issue," he says. "To both parties, I say, please wait until you watch the serial, and I promise you it will be up to standard." Ibrahim, himself a father of two, believes that most young Arab people have a very superficial idea about the personal life of Darwish, his relationships, his travels, and his very rich friendships. A similar condemnation was levelled at Asmahan before the end of its production, and now it is hailed as one of the best Arab dramas ever. "I am calling on all those journalists and commentators who object to the idea to submit some positive suggestions or hints that will enrich our project, and I promise to take them all seriously." Besides the current shooting of the serial, Ibrahim has other works on hold, including a serial called What a Lengthy Night, written by late scriptwriter Bassiouni Othman and directed by Mohamed El-Naggar . "It's a very well-written scenario in the domestic and social genre, and I believe it will add much success to my career," he says. How would he evaluate the phenomenon of the increasing number of Arab actors now appearing in Egyptian dramas? "I don't consider myself a stranger here, because I have acted in nine Egyptian serials by now. And the so-called phenomenon dates back 70 years to when Egypt welcomed Arab actors to take roles in the Egyptian cinema," he points out. "It also goes the other way, with many Egyptians acting in Syrian and Gulf dramas," he adds. "And as a producer of the Asmahan serial, I was keen on enrolling Egyptian actors such as Ahmed Shaker, who played the role of Farid El-Atrash, as well as Ghada Ibrahim and the prominent actor Youssef Shaaban." There have also been roles in the theatre. In 2003 Ibrahim acted in 2003 in a play called Joints of a Rock that ran at the Syrian National Theatre. Ibrahim yearns to break into the world of cinema, but he says the Syrian cinema situation is not very encouraging. "And one should be very cautious before accepting a role in Egyptian cinema, because it is really a risky profession," he concludes.
