Richard Caliban truly qualifies as a citizen of the world. The son of a General Motors executive, Richard was raised in a variety of exotic locales, such as Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. This international exposure gives him a unique perspective on the performing arts, which is why he has found success as a playwright, a director, and even as a part-time musician.

Although he was born in NY, it was not until 1976 that he settled in the Big Apple. He graduated from Bard College and the Yale School of Drama, and after nine years of acting he started writing plays. He loved being a playwright, but he " didn' t enjoy sitting in the background and not dealing with the cast" . Directing was the role he wanted, so in 1985 he started the award-winning, highly-acclaimed theater company called the Cucaracha Theater. For fourteen years (1985-1998) he served as Artistic Director of the Tribeca Theater, which won an Obie Award in 1989. (The theater closed in 1989 due to skyrocketing rents in lower Manhattan.)

Most recently, Richard found great success with his production Mom - A Rock Concert Musical, which won the award for Outstanding Musical at the 2009 New York International Fringe Festival. Richard wrote the book, the lyrics, and the music for the play, which is currently in development for a commercial run.

Richard Caliban has worked as a playwright and director in countries such as, the United Kingdom, Hungary, and Uzbekiztan, and he would love the opportunity to work in Europe again. " In America we have a strong tradition of realism. In Europe, theater is more abstract. It is much more theatrical. There is more music and dance, and there are even puppets in their shows. They seem to take theater much more seriously over there. Here, if you are not making a movie you are a ' not ready for prime-time player.' "

Richard has had the pleasure of working with Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Jules Feiffer on the revival of his Tony nominated play, Knock Knock. He worked with Michael Weller on the premiere of Help, and with Mac Welman on the Obie and New York Outer Critics Circle Award winning premiere of Crowbar. Richard also participated in Will Scheffer' s (Big Love, HBO) Easter with Naked Angels.

Richard was attracted to The Cutting Den because it is atypical of the types of theater he usually directs. " I am most known for ensemble theater, where there is a heavy focus on music and on the visual. The Cutting Den appealed to me because it is Miller-esque and since I don' t often do that type of production it was attractive to me. This is the second play of Ron' s I have directed," said Caliban. In September 2006 Richard Caliban directed playwright Ron Scott Stevens' Cherry' s Patch at Soho Playhouse.

Richard and his musical group, Les Funky Bitches Fantastique, can be found performing their international music at cabarets around NYC. Richard plays the bongos and the guitar, and the group plays an assortment of music, such as Rock, Latin, French, and Eastern European.