Born Richard Treat Williams, Mr. Williams was born and raised in Connecticut, the son of a corporate executive and an antiques dealer. In the early 1970s, Mr. Williams committed himself to the theatre while a student at Franklin and Marshall College, specializing in Shakespeare and Ibsen with the occasional contemporary play and musical mixed in. While a student, Mr. Williams performed with the Actors’ Company of Pennsylvania and the Fulton Opera House. He remained connected to the latter for the rest of his life, and in 1991, Mr. Williams was named an honorary chair of the fundraising campaign to renovate the venue, now called the Fulton Theatre.