Biography
Head of MFA/BFA Costume Design. A proud graduate of Penn State's School of Theatre, Richard has been designing professionally for 30 years. He has designed for the Opera Company of Philadelphia, Seattle Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Philadelphia Theatre Company, the Curtis Music Institute, and the Arden Theatre Company.
He is the recipient of two Barrymore Awards for Outstanding Costume Design. He designed costumes for the world premiere of Terrence McNally's GOLDEN AGE for the Philadelphia Theatre Company, directed by Austin Pendleton. This production was part of Terrence McNally's Nights at the Opera performed at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He designed the world premiere of William Schuman's A QUESTION OF TASTE for the Glimmerglass Opera, and the American premiere of PHAEDRA for the Opera Company of Philadelphia. Most recently he designed the costumes for MOTHER AND SONS at the Philadelphia Theatre Company starring Michael Learned.
As Resident Costume Designer/Costume Director for the Opera Company of Philadelphia for 26 years he designed for Gian Carlo Menotti, Luciano Pavarotti, Theodore Bikel, James Galway, Judith Jamison, Denyse Graves, Juan Diego Florez, Stephanie Blythe, Nathan Gunn, Christine Goerke and Anna Netrebko.
Richard worked as a milliner on the major motion picture BELOVED, and as an assistant designer on UNBREAKABLE, THE HAPPENING, THE MIGHTY MACS, and PARANOIA.
He has taught Costume Design at Stony Brook University, Rutgers University and Philadelphia's University of the Arts. Mr. St.Clair holds a BA from Penn State University and an MFA from Temple University, both in Theatrical Costume Design. He is a member of United Scenic Artists – local 829, and IATSE local 52 – Motion Picture Studio Mechanics.