Burian Emil František

(1904–1956), Czech director, actor, composer, writer and theatre theorist. He was one of the most outstanding members of the European avant-garde. Thanks to his wide-ranging education and artistic talents, he was able to work towards his concept of a synthetic theatre which not only combined various art forms but indeed amalgamated literature, music, visual art and performance in a unique and inimitable unity. He was active primarily as director of his own experimental theatres D34 and then after World War II D46. In summer 1958 Grotowski participated in Burian’s Theatre Seminar in Prague and Karlovy Vary. There he witnessed two performances by the creator of the synthetic theatre, a version of Brecht’s Threepenny Opera and a staging of his own text Folk Suite (Lidová suita).