Member-only story
20+ Years Working in Silicon Valley with a Drama Degree
Almost everyone I know who has a college degree in some field of study is not working in that field years later. That’s certainly true for me with my B.A. Degree in Drama. No big surprise, because as some wag once wrote, “You can make a killing in the Theatre, but you can’t make a living.”
I do consider myself a “working” playwright/screenwriter because I’m still writing scripts and having the odd one produced every now and then. But I don’t make any money. So it’s always a bit satisfying in my “day job” when I’m asked to do something where my Theatre training can be called upon. That training includes acting, directing, singing, dancing, improvising, and scriptwriting. (Only the last activity is one I do reliable well.)
A year or so ago, I was able to write a “caveman” skit for the opening of a keynote at my company’s annual user conference in Las Vegas. There were more than 10,000 people in the room — my biggest audience ever. It was a fun experienced. Unfortunately, the skit was only marginally successful when the executive who followed the skit botched the punchline. In fact, he didn’t even say the “evolution” punchline. Amateurs.
Recently, I got to do some acting in an internal-only company video that was shown at the All-Hands meeting today. It was only a 90-second or so spot, but thousands of…
