University official is almost a professional thespian (7)
I believe the answer is:
proctor
'university official' is the definition.
(type of official at some universities)
'almost a professional thespian' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'professional' could be 'pro' (abbreviation) and 'pro' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
'is' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for proctor that I've seen before include "College official" , "University disciplinarian" , "University official" , "Disciplinary officer" , "University officer" .)