The former Syrian Minister of Culture, writer and theater critic, Riad Esmat, died after suffering a corona in the American city of Chicago.
Esmat occupied a number of sites in Syria, from the head of the Cultural Programs Department on Syrian TV, to the dean of the Higher Institute for Theatrical Arts, then the director of the Public Authority for Radio and Television, and the assistant minister of culture, before he occupied the minister’s website between 2010-2012, as he was the ambassador of his country in Pakistan then Qatar.
Since 2013 he has been a visiting professor at American universities.
Esmat had fingerprints in many literary and media fields. He is a storyteller, author, critic and theater director.
He was born in Damascus in 1947, and obtained a degree in English literature.
He continued his postgraduate studies in theater and television directing and obtained a doctorate in theatrical arts in the United States.
He has about 35 books that varied between critical books, (and there are those who classify him as one of the most important Arab critics). He also wrote a number of plays and storybooks, and published them in several Arab capitals, including critical books, plays, stories and novel collections. He also wrote dialogues and scenarios for TV series such as “Hulako,” “Crown of Thorns,” “Anonymous,” and “Mystery Stories.”
Source: RT
