Richard Diprima

RICHARD R. DIPRIMA, Psy.D.

1941 – 2022

Richard R. DiPrima, Psy.D., 81, of Madison passed away Sunday, October 16, 2022, at Meriter Hospital. He was born on September 19, 1941, the son of Francis R. DiPrima and Emma Mallozzi, in Brooklyn, NY.

Richard graduated from Harvard University in 1962, with a B.A. degree in American Intellectual History. He continued his graduate studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After stints writing for the New York Times, and running Democratic campaigns in Wisconsin, he became CEO of Knowledge Unlimited, Inc., in Madison, which published NewsCurrents, a weekly current events magazine for students in grades 1-12 -- as well as in-depth studies on science discoveries, economics, global politics, animal intelligence, views of the future, the structure of poetry, and much, much more. Richard’s unique gift for explaining the most complex ideas in clear and accessible language made these publications invaluable tools for teachers and students across the nation and in other countries.

In 1991, Richard obtained his Doctorate of Psychology (Psy.D.) from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology and became a Clinical Psychologist specializing in child psychology. While working toward this degree, he operated RD Associates -– a solo consulting business in which he created marketing products for national and international brands. Between 1992 and 1999, Richard and his wife, Anne (also a Clinical Psychologist) practiced psychology at the Sparrow Center in Evanston, IL; and at The Hypnotherapy Institute of the Carolinas in Charlotte, NC – both clinics they established and operated together.

Earlier, in 1980, Richard had founded Madison’s acclaimed Young Shakespeare Players (“YSP”), a not-for-profit young people’s theater program that would become Richard’s greatest life’s work and his legacy. YSP, which has existed for 42 years in Madison, is unique in that it produces Shakespeare’s plays full-length and uncut with actors aged 7-18 working together; it never auditions or rejects any young actor; and YSP provides scholarships to enable any young person with a desire to learn Shakespeare to take part.

More than anything else, what distinguishes YSP from other youth theaters is that, from its inception, Richard insisted that YSP’s young actors be able to understand all the words of Shakespeare that they speak onstage. To this end he painstakingly recorded, over many years, thousands of hours of explanations of every word and phrase of every role in every one of the 18+ Shakespeare plays that YSP produces. This profoundly valuable body of work makes Shakespeare’s plays accessible to actors and readers of any age. Richard infused YSP with the same values that he lived — kindness, mutual respect, inclusiveness, emotional safety, freedom from rivalry — and a belief in the inexhaustible promise of young minds working with (in his words) “the best material our species has produced.”

In 1999, Richard and Anne returned from North Carolina to run YSP full-time. It then quickly grew into a year-round program and was soon producing more full-length Shakespeare each year than any theater of any size in the Midwest (or possibly in the world). This is still true today, 42 years after YSP’s founding.

In addition to directing all of YSP’s operations for 42 years, Richard published several books of original Shakespeare scholarship. These include an 854-page book on Shakespeare’s use of language: The Actor’s (and Intelligent Reader’s) Guide to the Language of Shakespeare. This book elucidates in great detail Shakespeare’s use of language according to the “RISARA Model” – a rubric and acronym that Richard devised that stands for the uses of Rhythm, Imagery, Sound, Antitheses, Repetition, and Architecture in any verse or prose. Richard is also the author of new annotated editions of five of Shakespeare’s plays: King Lear, Julius Caesar, King Richard II, Macbeth, Othello, and Twelfth Night. These editions are entirely unique in that, in addition to original explanatory notes on meaning, they contain detailed notes and graphic diagrams on the RISARA elements — the intricate ways Shakespeare used language itself -- in each passage.

In addition to his groundbreaking work with Shakespeare’s language, Richard also published, and produced with YSP, an original 10-hour stage adaptation of Charles Dickens’ novel, Our Mutual Friend. Under Richard’s direction, YSP also produced many plays by George Bernard Shaw; workshops juxtaposing comic scenes of Shakespeare with ones by the late comedian, Sid Caesar; many staged readings of works by Dickens and James Thurber; and much more.

Richard’s boundless intellectual curiosity kept him always reading several books simultaneously – usually on history, politics, or science (especially quantum physics and theory). He loved classical music, the great Italian tenors, and the Great American Songbook, especially songs from 1920-1960 pop and jazz. He (along with his older brother Frank) could recite from memory the lyrics to a hundred of these songs. Richard played the octave mandolin and the bowed psaltery; on weekends, he and Anne would have sessions of “paint-and-play,” with Richard playing the psaltery (always with a cat on his lap) while Anne painted abstract art. Richard had also grown to love kayaking; for many summers, he and Anne spent as much time on the water as possible, letting the fascination of light and shadow, herons and cranes, ducks and baby turtles lull their stress away.

Richard is survived by his wife Anne, their son Alex, Richard’s daughter Liza and son Daniel; a brother Frank; five grandchildren; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents, and an older sister, the poet Diane DiPrima -- and by numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.

A private cremation service was held on Thursday, October 20, with close family present. A public celebration of Richard’s life and legacy will be held early in 2023.

Tax-deductible donations in Richard’s memory may be sent to The Young Shakespeare Players, in care of Anne DiPrima, 1810 West Lawn Avenue, Madison WI, 53711; or by using the PayPal button on the YSP website: http://ysp.org . Written remembrances are also deeply appreciated.