MARKIA NICOlE SMITH

Markia Nicole Smith is a 23 year old queer artist from Baltimore; currently living in NYC. She began her journey in the arts at the age of ten when she began studying visual arts via the TWIGS program. The program is a subset of the Baltimore School for the Arts, an audition based public high school, where Markia attended high school as an acting major. During her time at BSA, Markia had the privilege of working on a wide range of projects including a production of Hairspray in concert alongside John Waters, Beth Leavel and Natasha Yvette Williams (just a small fragment of the star studded cast)where she played “Little Inez”.

She continued her theatre training on a collegiate level at Point Park University; graduating with a BFA in acting in 2019. While there, she performed in many main stage productions including The Who’s Tommy and Vinegar Tom.

Markia’s passion for the arts is deeply rooted in her desire to connect through truth and empathy. Every show she works on has a special place in her heart. Some of her recent credits include: Paulina Sarpong in School Girls; Or the African Mean Girls at the Pittsburgh Public Theater and Cleo in the world premiere of Indoor Person Off-Broadway at Normal Ave. Markia is a proud member of the Actor’s Equity Association; something she’d dreamt of since 8th grade.

She’s a very vocal advocate for arts education and for the past 9 years has dedicated her summers to teaching several week long theatre intensives to Baltimore City students with the Hippodrome Foundation Inc. Markia aspires to use her craft to inspire and create space for any and all people who feel that they are not heard or do not have a voice. That is why she is so damn stoked to be putting on her producer hat with this magnificent team of individuals for Off The F*cking Rails with Kim Griffin! This podcast holds space for much of what inspires and motivates Markia and she can’t wait for you all to get sucked into this raw ass magical content!