Tristan Tzara (; ; born
Samuel or
Samy Rosenstock, also known as
S. Samyro; – December 25, 1963) was a Romanian and French
avant-garde poet, essayist and
performance artist. Also active as a journalist, playwright, literary and art critic, composer and film director, he was known best for being one of the founders and central figures of the
anti-establishment Dada movement. Under the influence of
Adrian Maniu, the adolescent Tzara became interested in
Symbolism and co-founded the magazine
Simbolul with
Ion Vinea (with whom he also wrote
experimental poetry) and painter
Marcel Janco. During
World War I, after briefly collaborating on Vinea's
Chemarea, he joined Janco in Switzerland. There, Tzara's shows at the
Cabaret Voltaire and
Zunfthaus zur Waag, as well as his poetry and
art manifestos, became a main feature of early Dadaism. His work represented Dada's
nihilistic side, in contrast with the more moderate approach favored by
Hugo Ball.