He began performing with the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival in 1977. Over the next three years, Hanks spent his summers acting in different Shakespeare plays and his winters working backstage at a community theatre company.

1977 年，他开始在五大湖莎士比亚戏剧节上表演。在接下来的三年里，汉克斯夏天在不同的莎士比亚戏剧中表演，冬天则在一家社区剧院公司的后台工作。