What did the man do before attending a drama school?

W: What did you do before you went to a drama school?
M: Well, I’d joined an amateur theatre club. We did about six plays a year, and I found that I was living for the evenings and weekends. I eventually got a place in drama school and, although it was tough, I’ve never looked back.
W: And while at drama school you worked as a busking. Why?
M: Financially it was a necessity, for it supported me through drama school. I used to play my guitar and sing in underground stations in London during the Friday morning rash hour.
W: And this interest in performing goes back to your grandmother, doesn’t it?
M: Yes, apparently she had once worked in the theatre, although I never knew her.
W: And you describe yourself as a very shy person. Why do you want to perform if you’ re shy?
M: I suppose nobody likes being shy, not being able to cope in social situations, so shy people are always looking for a way to join in somehow.
W: So does that mean that, as a shy person, you enjoy playing exciting roles, because you can have a goal at being the type of person you’ re not in real life?
M: Well, I’ m not lacking in energy. I do put a lot of energy into my work and I like playing all sorts of characters.
W: But, on the other hand, presumably you play a role better if there are some similarities between you and the kind of guy you play?
M: Yes, I don’t think that. On screen you can play a character unless you can find some similarities. The audience knows. And if the actor is, having to try too hard, it doesn’t work.
Q 6. What did the man do before attending a drama school?
Q 7. Why did the man take up "busking"?
Q 8. How did the man’s grandmother influence him?
Q 9. What does the man say about actors who are shy?
Q 10. When do actors play a role better, in the man’s opinion?