Where Did Aubrey Plaza Go To College?
Aubrey Christina Plaza was born on June 26, 1984 in Wilmington, Delaware. She was raised in the nearby suburb of Brandywine Hundred.
Early Life and Family
Aubrey is the younger daughter of Bernadette, an attorney, and David Plaza, a financial advisor. She has an older sister named Renee.
Her father is Puerto Rican and her mother is Irish-English. Aubrey embraced her multicultural background growing up, learning Spanish and attending festivals that celebrated Puerto Rican culture.
Childhood and Interests
As a child, Aubrey took lessons in guitar, piano, dance and singing. From a young age she loved to perform, putting on shows for her family.
In middle school and high school, she became involved in stage productions and modeling. Aubrey also nurtured a love of photography during her teenage years.
Health Problems in Childhood
When Plaza was 20 years old, she suffered a stroke that caused temporary paralysis and expressive aphasia. The stroke impacted her speech for several years.
Through hard work and speech therapy, she was able to make a full recovery within a few years. However, she still occasionally struggles with slurred or impaired speech caused by the stroke damage.
Where Did Plaza Go To College?
After graduating from Ursuline Academy high school in 2002, Aubrey Plaza enrolled at New York University. She was interested in pursuing a career in performing arts.
Studying at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts
At NYU, Plaza studied film and TV production at the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts. The competitive program accepted less than 15% of applicants at the time.
She graduated in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree from the Tisch School. Plaza was involved in theater and improv comedy while attending college.
Improv and Comedy Groups
As a student, Plaza trained and performed with a number of improv and sketch comedy groups connected to NYU:
- Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB)
- Boom Chicago comedy group
- Laughingstock Improv Group
Her involvement in improv performance laid the foundation for her deadpan comedic style. The UCB style of long-form improv highly influenced her acting approach.
Did She Go to Graduate School?
No, Aubrey Plaza did not attend graduate school after completing her undergraduate studies at NYU Tisch in 2006.
She moved straight into pursuing comedy and theater opportunities full-time after finishing her bachelor’s degree.
Plaza’s Career After College
While at college, Plaza appeared in several short films, plays, and sketches. After graduating NYU in 2006, her entertainment career gained momentum.
Break into Comedy and Improv
In 2005, while still a student, Plaza performed improv and sketch comedy as part of the Boom Chicago group in Amsterdam.
After returning stateside in 2006, she continued training and performing improv regularly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York:
Table 1: Improv Comedy Groups Plaza Performed With 2006-2009 GroupName YearsPerformed Venue Upright Citizens Brigade 2006–2009 New York City and Los Angeles The Nipsey 2007–2008 UCB New York Shitty Jobs 2007–2008 UCB New York
Her improv skills led to opportunities to appear in viral online videos for the website CollegeHumor in 2006 and 2007.
Breakout Role: NBC’s Parks and Recreation
Aubrey landed her breakout role as sullen intern April Ludgate on NBC’s sitcom Parks and Recreation in 2009.
Producer Mike Schur saw Plaza performing improv at UCB and created the role specifically for her abilities.
She would go on to star as April for all 7 seasons of the acclaimed show from 2009-2015.
Transition to Film
After establishing herself on Parks and Recreation, Plaza began appearing more regularly in films while still starring on the TV series:
Table 2: Select Plaza Film Roles 2009-2018 Film Year Released Role Mystery Team 2009 Funny People 2009 Scott Pilgrim vs. the World 2010 Julie Powers Damsels in Distress 2011 Heather Safety Not Guaranteed 2012 Darius Britt Life After Beth 2014 Beth Slocum Dirty Grandpa 2016 Lenore Ingrid Goes West 2017 Ingrid Thorburn An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn 2018 Lulu Danger
Recent Projects Since 2015
Since Parks and Recreation concluded in 2015, Plaza has continued taking on dark comedic roles for both TV and movies:
- Legion (FX TV Series 2016-2019) … Lenny Busker / Cornflakes / Benny
- Ingrid Goes West (Movie 2017) … Ingrid
- Black Bear (Move 2020) … Allison
- The White Lotus (HBO TV Series 2021) … Harper Spiller
She also voices the role of Grumpy Cat in several TV specials and movies.
In 2022, Plaza received critical praise for starring in the second season of the HBO anthology series The White Lotus.
Conclusion
In summary, acclaimed comedic actress Aubrey Plaza attended New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, graduating in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree.
Her education at NYU Tisch focused on film and television production, including theater studies and improvisational comedy training. Plaza honed her comedic skill set performing improv and sketch comedy while a student with troupes like Upright Citizens Brigade.
After graduation, Plaza leaned on her improv abilities to land her breakout role as April Ludgate on NBC’s hit sitcom Parks and Recreation in 2009. She has continued acting in dark comedic roles across television and film ever since.
So when considering the question “Where did Aubrey Plaza go to college?”, the answer is she earned her bachelor’s degree from the renowned theater program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts before launching her celebrated comedy career.
Frequently Asked Questions About Aubrey Plaza’s Education
Where is Aubrey Plaza originally from?
A. Plaza was born in Wilmington, Delaware in 1984 and grew up in nearby Brandywine Hundred.
What health issues did she face growing up?
A. When Plaza was 20 years old, she suffered a stroke that caused temporary paralysis and speech issues. Through therapy she made a full recovery within a few years.
Did Plaza attend college?
A. Yes, after graduating high school Plaza attended New York University. She earned a bachelor’s degree in 2006 from NYU’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts.
What did she study at NYU Tisch?
A. At NYU, Plaza studied film and TV production at the Tisch School of the Arts theater program. She graduated in 2006.
Was she involved with improv comedy in college?
A. Yes, while attending NYU Plaza trained and performed improv comedy with Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and other troupes around NYC. This laid the foundation for her acting career.