He later attended the University of Alberta, where he obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree.
Thiessen's work has been translated into several languages including German, French, Polish and Hebrew.
Lenin's Embalmers, A More Perfect Union and Einstein's Gift have been produced Off-Broadway.
Vern served as artistic director of Work Shop West Theatre in Edmonton beginning in 2014.
[1] In 2014 he won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play for his theatrical adaptation of W. Somerset Maugham's novel Of Human Bondage.