Val Stasik may be leaving the theater but, according to her, she isn’t going anywhere.

“It is time for a change,” she said.

“And while I am leaving this position [as executive director], my passion for this theater remains.”

Stasik, 63, has held the position since 1986, when Fountain Hills Theater was incorporated. She and now-theater board President Sandi McGee worked together prior to the incorporation, putting together the foundation for what has become the theater it is today.

A graduate of Catholic University with a degree in theater, Stasik had imagined her life to be as an actor.

“I didn’t plan to be an administrator,” she said.

But she found herself in a place where she could follow her passion to act, as well as lead the theater.

“Oh, I had very grandiose ideas then,” she said.

Ideas, but no money.

But Stasik had a board that was as passionate about having a first-class theater in Fountain Hills as she was, and she proceeded to follow her path of idealism and creativity.

In the early years, Fountain Hills Theater produced non-royalty plays.

“We couldn’t afford royalties, so we did things we could do and still entertain people,” Stasik said.

The first royalty show the theater did was Godspell. Stasik said she begged, borrowed and stole to get the show produced.

“I had help from a lot of people,” she added.

“And in the end, the show was a success. It was the first rung on the ladder.”

Stasik likens the growth of the theater, and the evolution of the institution, to a ladder. Each step represents a rung.

“When we bought our first storage unit that was not in somebody’s back yard, that was reaching the next rung,” she said.

Other milestones included the hiring of Peter J. Hill as artistic director. Ross Collins was hired in 2002 as the youth director, another rung.

“The truth is, the theater is about family,” Stasik said.

“When adding staff, when we began growing in earnest, each step we took was a milestone.”

The steps taken were not accidental. Stasik has been careful about the way the theater has grown. If there wasn’t enough money to get to the next level, it waited. But it always arrived eventually.

And Fountain Hills Theater has always operated in the black.

“It isn’t like we have a lot of money, but we have done okay,” Stasik said.

“And that came with sacrifices from everyone. There were times when staff would have to take a pay cut, or wouldn’t get a raise, or we didn’t just rush out and get something we thought we couldn’t live without. We have all been in it together.”

Stasik said she is ready to make the transition to something new in her life. She said the theater world has changed, but she is dedicated to bringing someone in as her replacement who will have the same passion, heart and philosophy she has always had.

“And [someone] who can do the stuff I don’t do,” she added.

She said the board will look for a person with the personality, but also the business background to take over the reins at the end of this fiscal year in June.

McGee said Stasik will be missed.

“We are reassured that Val’s commitment to the success of the theater will be as strong as ever,” McGee said.

“Very few institutions in Fountain Hills span three generations of active participation, after all. This has been her child, and she could never totally leave it. Val, along with the board, welcomes a fresh perspective to deal with the changes that growth and success have brought to us.”

Stasik is humble about what she helped create, but she also is philosophical.

“If the theater’s legacy is going to last forever, it can’t be about me,” she said.

“I think the theater will last forever because so many people are part of its evolution.”

She said she will miss the staff “more than anything. And the children. And the actors. And the ups and downs and excitement that happens in live theater.”

She plans to travel more, explore more and see what there is around the next corner.

She will spend more time with her 10 grandchildren, friends and family.

“I’m really not going anywhere,” she said.

“I’m just turning a new corner.”

Or climbing a new rung.