KOMISSARJEVSKY

In 'Myself and the Theatre' (1930), Komissarjevsky explained that 'the idea behind all my productions was to create a Synthetic Theatre... where all forms of art could be harmoniously united in one single show', adding spoken dialogue to opera, music to plays, and enriching both with acrobatics or ballet. He had founded a school of acting in Moscow in 1910, producing a wide range of plays ancient and modern, then in 1918 became Managing Director of the Moscow Grand State Theatre of Opera and Ballet. He emigrated to England in 1919, giving a famous series of Russian Opera at Covent Garden that year, and settled in the U.S.A. in 1939.Eileen Cond was a book collector who sent out her bookplate to her favourite authors, many of whom signed and returned them to her. Among the most notable was Ian Fleming.