--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I started in theater. I did theater…" description: "\"I started in theater. I did theater professionally for seven years with my company before I started doing 'Friends.' I was waiting tables and doing the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca7/david-schwimmer-8353_before_i-started-in-theater-i-did-theater-profe_3015335.jpg" --- # I started in theater. I did theater professionally for… ![“I started in theater. I did theater professionally for seven years with my company before I started doing 'Friends.' I was waiting tables and doing theater.” quote by David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca7/david-schwimmer-8353_before_i-started-in-theater-i-did-theater-profe_3015335.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca7/david-schwimmer-8353_before_i-started-in-theater-i-did-theater-profe_3015335.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca7/david-schwimmer-8353_before_i-started-in-theater-i-did-theater-profe_3015335.jpg) > “I started in theater. I did theater professionally for seven years with my company before I started doing 'Friends.' I was waiting tables and doing theater.” [David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-schwimmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He began in theater, worked professionally for years, and later transitioned to TV while supporting himself with odd jobs. **In simple terms:** He started in theater, then moved to TV while doing other work. Key Takeaway Persistence and flexibility open new paths. Themes career persistence transition humility Mood hopeful determined Type personal career When to use this quote - theater auditions - TV acting - waiting tables - networking - financial stability Key Concepts career trajectory skill development industry shift Questions to Reflect On - What sacrifices are worth making for a dream? - How does early theater shape later performance? A Different Perspective The quote may ignore systemic barriers in entertainment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Before](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/before/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/did/) [Did Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/did-theater-265216/) [Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing/) [Doing Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-theater/) [Friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friends/) [Professionally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/professionally/) [Seven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seven/) [Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started/) [Started Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started-theater/) [Tables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tables/) [Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater/) [Theater Did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater-did-1517149/) [Theater Professionally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater-professionally-600148/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [I started in theater; I did theater in New York for 14 years before I even thought about doing movies - I never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-shaye/i-started-in-theater-i-did-theater-in-new-york-for-14-years-before-i/) [Lin Shaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-shaye/) > [I've never done theater professionally. But I went to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, so I did some theater there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-grimes/i-ve-never-done-theater-professionally-but-i-went-to-the-american/) [Luke Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-grimes/) > [I started off in theater; I did exclusively theater for four or five years. In the last few years, television has come along but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cillian-murphy/i-started-off-in-theater-i-did-exclusively-theater-for-four-or-five/) [Cillian Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cillian-murphy/) > [I knew in my heart I wanted to do musical theater professionally. I just didn't know how to go about it or how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-rodriguez-iii/i-knew-in-my-heart-i-wanted-to-do-musical-theater-professionally-i/) [Vincent Rodriguez III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-rodriguez-iii/) > [The first four years, I worked exclusively in the theater. I did a great deal of different types of acting - avant garde and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-lawson/the-first-four-years-i-worked-exclusively-in-the-theater-i-did-a/) [Denis Lawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-lawson/) > [ I met a bunch of people and they said, "We're gonna do a show \[Second City\]." So we would buy the theater out and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/i-met-a-bunch-of-people-and-they-said-we-re-gonna-do-a-show-second/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I majored in theater. I did plays. But musicals were not my thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daveed-diggs/i-majored-in-theater-i-did-plays-but-musicals-were-not-my-thing/) [Daveed Diggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daveed-diggs/) > [I went to Northwestern in Chicago, in Evanston, and then I ended up trickling down in Chicago theater. I did a bunch of plays,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-o-hare/i-went-to-northwestern-in-chicago-in-evanston-and-then-i-ended-up/) [Denis O'Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-o-hare/) > [I did great things in the theater. I did some nice roles, 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly' or 'La Vie en Rose.' And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-seigner/i-did-great-things-in-the-theater-i-did-some-nice-roles-the-diving/) [Emmanuelle Seigner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-seigner/) > [I had no idea I was going to have a career in the theater. I did not plan it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wilson/i-had-no-idea-i-was-going-to-have-a-career-in-the-theater-i-did-not/) [Robert Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wilson/) > [I went to Bard College for a year. And then, even though I didn't think I should give my blood to the theater, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-guest/i-went-to-bard-college-for-a-year-and-then-even-though-i-didn-t-think/) [Christopher Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-guest/) > [I adopted two children, then I got eye disease and five rounds of surgery. I went blind in one eye, then the other eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-patrick-shanley/i-adopted-two-children-then-i-got-eye-disease-and-five-rounds-of/) [John Patrick Shanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-patrick-shanley/) > [I'm working in theater. I did not grow up loving or even knowing anything about it, except for 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and 'Tommy.' But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-caffey/i-m-working-in-theater-i-did-not-grow-up-loving-or-even-knowing/) [Charlotte Caffey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-caffey/) > [I was in New York for a little while, doing some really bad theater. I did some great stuff, too, but there were Saturday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silas-weir-mitchell/i-was-in-new-york-for-a-little-while-doing-some-really-bad-theater-i/) [Silas Weir Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silas-weir-mitchell/) > [I love the theater, and I did tons of theater before I ever did anything in front of the camera, but I haven't done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-smart/i-love-the-theater-and-i-did-tons-of-theater-before-i-ever-did/) [Jean Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-smart/) ## More by David Schwimmer > [There's nothing like a play. It's so immediate and every performance is different. As an actor, you have the most control over what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-schwimmer/there-s-nothing-like-a-play-it-s-so-immediate-and-every-performance/) [David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-schwimmer/) > [Relax and be yourself, as if you'd ever just be standing in front of a camera not talking to anyone! 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Before I discovered it, I was walking around,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banks/music-is-almost-like-a-therapy-for-me-it-helps-keep-me-centered-and/) [Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banks/) > [My first company, Pure Software, was exciting and innovative in the first few years and bureaucratic and painful in the last few before it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-hastings/my-first-company-pure-software-was-exciting-and-innovative-in-the/) [Reed Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-hastings/) > [For the Russian masses, the proletarians, knew for certain, and already saw during the war, and in part before their very eyes, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-gorter/for-the-russian-masses-the-proletarians-knew-for-certain-and-already/) [Herman Gorter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-gorter/) > [The Constitution is very clear on the - on the declaration of war or reacting to international crimes - crimes against nations. 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Now I think my limo driver hates me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-romano/you-know-before-i-would-think-my-cab-driver-hates-me-now-i-think-my/) [Ray Romano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-romano/) [Browse all 4,123 Before quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/before/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I started in theater. I did theater professionally for seven years with my company before I started doing 'Friends.' 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