ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — After almost 16 years as the managing director and frontwoman of Different Strokes! Performing Arts Collective, the theatre company’s founder, Stephanie Hickling Beckman, is taking a much needed step back from the day-to-day operation. She admitted that the decision was made after a multi-year, thoughtful process.

“After nearly sixteen years of pushing this little engine uphill, I am tired. Not ‘take a nap and bounce back’ tired. I mean the kind of tired where your soul looks at you and says, ‘girl… sit down,’ and I listened,” Hickling Beckman said, adding that this is an important step in the company’s forward progress. “Every founder who wants their organization to grow has to eventually step back and let someone else bring in a fresh perspective.”

That fresh perspective is embodied by writer, director, actor and producer Rodney Smith. Originally from Long Island, New York, Smith studied English in school and got into performing as a stand-up comedian in clubs around Long Island and Manhattan. He moved to Asheville in 1993, where he began a career in database administration.

Throughout the early 2000s, Smith performed with bands, studied photography and acted in plays with local theatre companies. He attributes his initial connection with the Asheville theatre scene to his offspring, who converted him into a “theatre dad” when they were cast at age 10 in a production by the Montford Park Players. From there, a love of all things theatrical quickly developed in Smith, leading him to apprentice with local theatre companies, broadening his knowledge of set-building, operating light and sound boards and stage management.

In 2011, Smith met Hickling Beckman, who invited him to assistant direct for her on a couple of shows.

“She saw that spark in me before I knew what it was,” Smith recalled.

In 2016, with the encouragement of Hickling Beckman, Smith entered “Table Six,” a one-act play he had written, into The Asheville Fringe Arts Festival and directed it himself. It was very well-received by audiences and won a best comedy award.

“After [that], I felt confident to direct a full-length,” Smith said. “Steph gave me that opportunity as well. Steph has always been along for the ride, to make sure I remained encouraged and confident.”

Smith went on to direct productions for DSPAC, Warren Wilson College, The Magnetic Theatre and Attic Salt Theatre Company. He wrote three full-length plays: “Night of the Living Dead: REDUX,” “Full-Tilt Boogie at the Big Bang Diner” and “Santa Claus Conquers the Martians,” and co-created a series of live sketch comedy shows, including “The Super Happy Radio Hour,” “Crimes and Missed Demeanings” and “The Kids Show: Definitely NOT for Kids!.”

“This town has been wonderful to give me the opportunity to not only produce my plays, but in most cases, I have directed them as well,” Smith said. “Just the idea of taking words from a page and then bringing them to life is wondrous to me. Working with a group of talented people, all with the same goal of making the best theater we can, is so fulfilling. Seeing the audience connect with the story you set out to tell with your vision is empowering and validating.”

Smith said that he is excited to get more involved with DSPAC, and that it is a privilege to bring all his relevant life skills back to the company that gave him his first real opportunity to learn, train and grow as an artist.

“Over the last 15 years, whether it has been as an actor, director, sound designer, stage manager, graphic artist or simply supporter of Different Strokes!, I have been involved with the company and its mission,” Smith said.

Smith said that the company’s mission of “Making Theatre that Makes a Difference” aligns perfectly with his own goals as an artist, namely to utilize theatrical arts to not only entertain, but also to educate and inspire.

“When there is under-representation of a people, or a culture, or an ideal or a perspective, theater can bridge that gap by bringing these things to a wider audience who may not seek that information. At a time when our history is being sanitized or erased entirely, theater can ensure those stories remain in human consciousness,” Smith said.

Smith has recently taken the role of DSPAC production manager. He will be working with Hickling Beckman throughout the year to learn all the eccentricities and moving parts of the company, progressively taking things off her plate, which she feels he is perfectly equipped to do.

According to Hickling Beckman, Smith is “a man who has seen theatre from every angle: Front of house, backstage, onstage and probably spiritually hovering above the stage at some point.”

Hickling Beckman said that bringing in Smith represents a joyful shift in Different Strokes!’s story. “He’s the right person to help guide DSPAC into its next chapter.”