R.L. Richards

The late RL Richards was a classically trained actor, stage combatant, singer, and percussionist. Reared in St. Louis, MO and a lifelong diehard baseball and Cardinals fan, he received his Masters of Fine Arts training at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, IL and an undergraduate degree from Beloit College in Beloit, WI. His over 20 years of theatrical credits include many years as a part of Chicago's First Folio Theatre's repertory company, portraying roles as diverse as Petruchio, King Lear, Shylock, Macbeth, Benedick, Falstaff, and Hotspur. He also was an accomplished musical theatre performer. Some of his noted roles in that arena were Count Carl Magnus in A Little Night Music, Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls, the Voice of Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors, and Dr. Craven in The Secret Garden. Nowhere Fast was his first foray into feature film. Rich was a cat lover, a confirmed political progressive, and stalwart supporter of organized labor.