In the history of Russian literature Nikolai Erdman is known as the author of both Das Mandat (first published in German, 1926; translated as "The Mandate," 1975; Russian version, 1976), which Vsevolod Emil'evich Meierkhol'd staged in 1925, and the banned play Samoubiitsa (translated as "The Suicide," 1975), which--although written in the late 1920s--was not published until 1970 in Germany. Shortly after the writing of Samoubiitsa Erdman was arrested and exiled to Siberia. After his return from exile and especially after World War II, he established himself as a prolific screenplay writer. Until his death in 1970 he also worked for the Theater on Taganka, Operetta Theater, the radio, and in movie production. Despite this modest official record, he was a widely acclaimed playwright of the Russian avant-garde and a founder of the Russian theater of the absurd. His life and art have been treated in John Freedman's monograph, Silence's Roar: The Life and Drama of...