Richard appeared as King Claudius in the Polarity Ensemble Theatre production of Hamlet May 23 - June 15, 2008.

Richard played Teiresias in the Polarity Ensemble Theatre production of Antigone at the Breadline Theatre, February 17th through March 19, 2006.

Richard is the Artistic Director of the Polarity Ensemble Theatre and directed its first production, Absolute Macbeth, at the Breadline Theatre, April 29th through May 22, 2005.

Richard appeared as Polonius in the Keyhole Theatre Company production of Hamlet, January 21st to February 20th, 2005.

Richard appeared in the staged reading of Antigone, April 1, 2004.

Richard appeared as Launce, one of the comic servants in Two Gentlemen of Verona at Chicago's ShakespeareInc Theatre Company, from November 7th through December 7th, 2003. The show was presented at the Chicago Actors Studio, 1567 N. Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park.

Here is the Chicago Reader review of the production, in its entirety:

"This production of Shakespeare's early comedy about two boyhood friends--Valentine, who risks his career to run away with the boss's daughter, and Proteus, who tries to win her for himself, sacrificing friendship and his own true love--is set in 1950s America. The 16th-century class system has been replaced by a corporate hierarchy, noblemen have become executives, the upwardly mobile young people roughhouse, and slow dance to Elvis ballads. And the happy ending is true June Cleaver--predicated upon a degree of female compliance that would make Gloria Steinem's head explode.

"In keeping with Chicago storefront-theater tradition, this snappy production shines in its threadbare environment. The lead performances are crisp and energetic, though the guys' patter is often too slick. The supporting cadre of servants, fools, and thieves gets big laughs. And while crudely painted travel posters against a chipped white wall don't begin to evoke the splendor of Milan, and unflattering duds and synthetic wigs detract from the women's bombshell factor, all the important messages come through clearly. -Kim Wilson"
(c) 2003 Chicago Reader

Richard trained as an actor, director, playwright, and designer as an undergraduate at Northern Illinois University, where he played such roles as Max in Pinter's The Homecoming, Buffalo Bill in Kopit's The Indians, Mr. Mulleady in Behan's The Hostage, and many others.

He played Doc in West Side Story in 1979 at the American Institute in Barcelona, Spain.

He played Trofimov in Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard at the Chicago Actors Ensemble in 1987.

Richard performed as both an actor and percussionist in two improv shows: Ritual Clowns at the Improv Olympic and Welding Accident at the Bop Shop in 1995.

Richard played various onstage roles in The Oakton Project's Crossroads in 2000, as well as leading its playwriting team and directing its percussion ensemble.

He directed productions of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (NIU) and The Real Inspector Hound as a teacher at Reavis High School, Burbank, IL. He designed and provided technical direction for eleven productions at Reavis and Gordon Technical High School, where he also taught. He designed many of the special effects for the 1987 Chicago Actors Ensemble production of Ghost Watch.

Richard has taught, lectured, and given numerous public readings of his fiction. He plays drums in a jazz quartet and for spoken word events and is a published novelist.


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