Washington spent the summer of 1976 in St. Mary's City, Maryland, in summer stock theater performing "Wings of the Morning", the Maryland State play, which was written for him by incorporating an African-American character/narrator based loosely on the historical figure from early colonial Maryland, Mathias Da Sousa. Shortly after graduating from Fordham, Washington made his screen acting debut in the 1977 made-for-television film "Wilma", and his first Hollywood appearance in the 1981 film "Carbon Copy". He shared a 1982 Distinguished Ensemble Performance Obie Award for playing Private First Class Melvin Peterson in the Off-Broadway Negro Ensemble Company production "A Soldier's Play" which premiered November 20, 1981.