A native of
Zhitomir, Sulerzhitsky pursued study of the visual arts in
Kiev. As a schoolboy, he was involved in decorating the
Cathedral of Saint Vladimir in Kiev, working under the likes of
Mikhail Vrubel and
Viktor Vasnetsov. In 1890 he joined the
Stroganov Art School in
Moscow but dropped out four years later, due to his "anti-government escapades." Sulerzhitsky, always a colourful personality, turned his attention to
theatre and soon became a fixture of Moscow artistic life.
Tatyana Tolstaya, one of his schoolmates, introduced him to her famous father. Sulerzhitsky grew fascinated with
Leo Tolstoy's ideas of
pacifism and
anarchism and decided to dedicate his life to their dissemination. He became one of the most loyal
Tolstoyans. His diary kept track of early
Doukhobor life before, during, and just after the Doukhobor's migration to Canada at the beginning of the twentieth century. The published diary is called
To America with the Doukhobors. Sulerzhitsky contributed greatly to the construction of one of the most successful actor training techniques in the world. He worked with
Constantin Stanislavski for many years. In his book on
Stanislavski's 'system',
Mel Gordon attributes its founding to Stanislavski's nine-year relationship with Suler. He was well versed in Eastern-influenced religious practices, informing Stanislavski about
yoga, meditation and the nature of
Prana. ==References==