Doug Peruski: Loves Everything About Theatre

Doug Peruski studied acting at Kennesaw State University and at The University of Georgia, and graduated from the latter institution with a BA in Theatre Arts. He minored in Computer Science.

“I love everything about the theatre,” Doug Peruski says. He is an aspiring actor who has worked mostly in regional theatre in and around his home in Duluth, Georgia. In addition to his Theatre Arts degree, Doug Peruski has taken singing and dancing lessons privately for many years. As a singer, he says he possesses a fine baritone. But he admits that he is only passable as a dancer. “No one will mistake me for Fred Astaire,” he laughs. “I can do the basic steps – enough to get through a simple routine – but dancing is definitely not my strong suit!”

Doug Peruski says the coursework for getting his Theatre Arts degree was rigorous, but that he loved every minute of it. The required classes included Stagecraft, Costume Technology, Performance I and Performance II, Introduction to Dramatic Literature, and Issues in Contemporary Theatre.

But he says his favorite class was Fundamentals of Play Direction. The course involved the independent production of a play of the student’s choosing, although it had to be approved by his instructor. Doug Peruski selected Fourteen Miles Home, a one-act drama by the Irish playwright, Fearchar Flan. Doug Peruski recalls it as an exhilarating time. “We rehearsed for two months. Then the curtain went up.” He received an A for that production, and says it was one of the greatest learning experiences he had in the theatre.

After college Doug Peruski worked as a systems analyst at NCR for three years, but recalls it as a difficult time of his life. “I never really got into it,” he says. “My heart wasn’t into it. I wasn’t happy. My girlfriend left me. The only reason I stayed as long as I did was because the pay was so good.” Finally, enough was enough, and Doug Peruski quit his job to try his hand at acting.