Ricardo Morgan was more than just a character actor on any performing arts stage he graced.
Fellow actors were better in their roles because he was there.
“He was a still river that ran deep,” Mary Kate Burke said about Morgan, who was the gifted actor and had become a familiar face at Cape Fear Regional Theatre (CFRT) on Haymount Hill where Burke is artistic director.
His passion for the arts in this community knew no boundaries.
You could find him from the theater on the hill to the Gilbert Theater downtown, and where no play was too long or an intermission too brief, because the performing arts stage is where Ricardo Morgan wanted to be.
He knew his queues.
He knew his marks.
He knew his lines, and the lines of his fellow actors, too.
He was a stage presence, no matter his role, whether it was a cast member in The Color Purple, Memphis, Mamma Mia, Dreamgirls, Sweeney Todd, Trip to Bountiful, Harvey, Fences, Godspell, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Sister Act, Once On This Island, or Jelly’s Last Jam. Lead actors were the centerpieces of the plays and musicals, but when the curtain called for an encore bow, you knew Ricardo Morgan had been a part of it all.
Ricardo Morgan grew up along Ray Avenue and Moore Street downtown, and later in the Lakecrest neighborhood off Country Club Drive in north Fayetteville before his father and mother moved to Borus Drive off Cain Road. His father was an Army soldier and later became a Cumberland County magistrate. His mother was a schoolteacher for Cumberland County Schools.
He attended E.E. Smith High School, graduating in 1982, and later graduated from Fayetteville State University.
He was a proud Golden Bulls alumnus, and a proud FSU Bronco, too.
“He was a good student,” said Sharon McNair, who was director of the Smith 16 choral ensemble at the high school. “My direct musical connection began my first year and his senior year at E.E. Smith High School. He was a member of the Smith 16 ensemble and the Golden Singers Concert Choir.
“We connected again through the theater and finally got to work together as cast members for Member of the Wedding.” Many, many shows and musicals and events followed.
“He was the consummate orator and has served as narrator for our annual Christmas Cantata at St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church for at least the last 7-8 years,” she said. “And we served together on the Arts Council for a term.”
From the stage to the arts community, Ricardo Morgan cared.
“Ric Morgan believed the arts weren’t simply something to enjoy … they were something to champion,” said Kennon Jackson Jr., president and chief executive officer of the Arts Council Fayetteville | Cumberland County. “Whether he was serving on the Arts Council board, advocating for the importance of arts and culture in our community or stepping onto the stage himself, Ric led with generosity, passion and an unwavering belief in the power of the arts to bring people together. Fayetteville’s creative community is stronger because of his service, and he will be deeply missed.”
‘He Loved It So Much’
But it was the CFRT stage that brought Morgan such joy and fulfillment.
“From the time he entered the door enroute to the dressing room until he departed for his automobile after curtain call, Ricardo Morgan was the master of his trade,” said Willie Wright, the longtime house usher at the theater. “Not only did he promote action on the stage, he promoted and encouraged his fellow stage actors and actresses, backstage assistants, and other theatre staff. When he was not in a production, he was often in the audience. He will be missed at the Cape Fear Regional Theatre after appearing in many, many of the greatest shows on earth.”
When there was a production scheduled, you found Ricardo Morgan there.
“He was always there,” said Marc de la Concha, a popular actor at CFRT and the theater’s education director. “He always asked if he could help with anything. I would say he was the bond and glue. He always seemed to be around the ebb and flow of the theatre. He loved it so much and wanted everybody to be a part of it. He was serious about acting at the Cape Fear Regional Theatre and the Gilbert Theater, and he was very passionate. I will just miss him.”
Greg King, a local CFRT actor, remembered Morgan from their high school days at E.E. Smith High, and both in the class of 1982.
“I remember him back then as someone who cared deeply for music, watching him perform in the E.E. Smith Sweet 16,” King said. “He was always present in everything musical or theatrical. My first time on stage with Ric was in Trip to Bountiful at CFRT with Bo Thorp. We both commiserated on how surprised we were that it took us that long to be in a show together.
“He cared so much about his craft. He was always wanting notes and wanting to know how he could make anything he did better or more impactful. I was always so impressed with his presence in the Fayetteville art community. He seemed to be everywhere all the time. He cared that much.
“After every show I ever did, there would always be a post online from Ric filled with encouragement and praise… always,” King said. “He was just that kind of guy.”
‘He Believed in Me’
Monique Butler McLeod, choral director at E.E. Smith High, said she would not be there without encouragement from Morgan.
“We were both attending a wedding where he was narrating and I had to sing, and I remember during that time he said to me if the opportunity presented itself, ‘I hope that one day you will come back to Fayetteville and you take over the choir program at E.E. Smith when our choir teacher was making plans to retire,” she said. “He said, ‘You need to carry on the legacy.’
“He believed in me. It’s a blessing what Ric saw in me, and that’s the type of person he was.
“Before I was performing at CFRT, I would always go to the performances myself or I would bring my students on field trips, and it was always cool seeing Ric up there on stage,” she said. “He was always a face that I looked for, depending on what the play or the musical was. I saw him in and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and he was hilarious, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Wiz, Crowns, and Jelly’s Last Jam.”
McLeod and Morgan performed together in Once on This Island in the spring of 2025.
“It was just so awesome to have the opportunity to share the stage with my friend,” she said. “The chemistry that we had on stage was so obvious. Ric was like a big brother to me. He was like an uncle to my son and daughter. In fact, he was like that uncle to a lot of youth. I’m going to miss him so much.”
‘He Will Be Profoundly Missed’
Friday will be a somber and emotional day at First Baptist Church on Moore Street, where Ricardo Samuels Morgan will be remembered for his love of Cape Fear Regional Theatre and Gilbert Theater, and his passion for the arts in this community.
He died suddenly on July 7.
He was 62.
A viewing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m., with the service scheduled for 11 a.m. Morgan was a lifelong member of the church.
“Ric Morgan was a singular person,” Burke and Ella Wrenn, CFRT’s managing director, said in a joint statement on Monday. “His warmth on the stage was palpable, but it was offstage that his presence really shaped the arts in Fayetteville.
“Ric was a staple at CFRT and on this community’s stages for decades. It is where he felt most at home, working with an incredible group of colleagues, telling a story, delighting audiences and reminding us all of the depth of our shared humanity.
“He was a pleasure to have in any ensemble, beloved by artists, staff and audiences alike,” they said. “He will be profoundly missed.”
Epilogue
Ricardo Morgan was John Prentice in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Ol’ Mista in The Color Purple, Father Alex in Mamma Mia, Tiny Joe Dixon in Dreamgirls, Ton Ton Julian in Once On This Island, and Duke the piano man in Jelly’s Last Jam.
But being Ricardo Morgan is the role we’ll most remember.
On Friday, Ricardo Morgan takes his final curtain call from the performing arts stages and the arts community he cherished with all of his heart. And Ricardo Morgan, Mary Kate Burke will tell you, was “a still river that ran deep” on the theatre stage atop Haymount Hill.
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
