Early career Smith became a professional actress in 1982. After appearances in a number of school plays, she joined the local Arena Stage theater group on an apprenticeship, featuring in their production of Peter Pan. She went on to star in several other plays in Washington. She moved to New York City in 1984 and appeared in the Broadway production of Tom Stoppard's play The Real Thing alongside Jeremy Irons and Glenn Close.
Early career Smith became a professional actress in 1982. After appearances in a number of school plays she joined the local Arena Stage theater group on an apprenticeship, featuring in their production of Peter Pan She went on to star in several other plays in Washington. She moved to New York City in 1984 and appeared in the Broadway production of Tom Stoppard's play The Real Thing alongside Jeremy Irons and Glenn Close.