Aubrey Christina Plaza is an American actress and comedian best known for her portrayal of April Ludgate in Parks and Recreation.
Biography[]
Plaza was born in Wilmington, Delaware, on June 26, 1984. Her parents were Bernadette and David Plaza, and she has two younger sisters, Renee and Natalie. She was named after the song "Aubrey" performed by Bread. During her time in high school, she was the student council president. Plaza participated in productions with the Wilmington Drama League. She later graduated from Ursuline Academy in 2002, and New York University's Tisch School of the Arts four years later. Plaza reportedly had many internships, including one at Samba Post-Its and another as a page for NBC. She also served as an assistant to Bennett Davlin during the making of his award-winning short film TC3. Early in her career, she performed improvisational and sketch comedy at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, which she has done since 2004. She also performed stand-up comedy and has appeared at the Laugh Factory and The Improv. In 2008, Plaza participated in the Improv Everywhere prank known as "Mobile Desktop". During this prank, she and two other people brought desktop PCs, including a CRT monitor, tower computer, keyboard, and mouse into a Starbucks and used them while other patrons use laptops there.
Plaza starred in the online web-series The Jeannie Tate Show, as well as ESPN's Mayne Street. She also made an appearance in the first episode of the "Terrible Decisions with Ben Schwartz" segment on Funny or Die. Later, Plaza portrayed Daisy in Funny People and also had roles in the comedy films Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Mystery Team, which debuted at 2009 Sundance. Starting in 2009, she played her best-known role of April Ludgate, the deadpan employee in Parks and Recreation, a role she starred in until 2015 with the show's conclusion. Plaza had a recurring role as "The Princess" in the comedic sci-fi web-series Troopers. In 2012, Plaza had her first starring role in a major film, specifically the comedy film Safety Not Guaranteed. In it, she portrays Darius, a jaded intern who answers a want ad "seeking a companion for a time travelling adventure"; her performance in the film was praised by critics. During the 2013 MTV Movie Awards ceremony, Plaza abruptly jumped onstage and tried to wrestle a Golden Popcorn Award out of the hands of fellow comedian Will Ferrell during his acceptance speech and was subsequently kicked out from the event.
On Criminal Minds[]
Plaza portrayed prolific, psychopathic serial killer and hitwoman Cat Adams in the Season Eleven episode "Entropy". She reprised the role in the two-part Season Twelve finale episodes "Green Light" and "Red Light", before making one final appearance in Season Fifteen episode "Date Night".
Filmography[]
- King Knight (2020) as Pine Cone (voice)
- Criminal Minds - 4 episodes (2016-2020) TV episodes - Cat Adams
- Black Bear (2020) as Allison
- Crank Yankers (2019) as Bernadette (voice)
- Legion (2017-2019) as Lenny Busker (27 episodes)
- Drunk History (2013-2019) as Cleopatra/Aaron Burr/Sacagawea (3 episodes)
- Child's Play (2019) as Karen Barclay
- The Cold Open (2019) as Aubrey Plaza
- An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn (2018) as Lulu Danger
- Easy (2017) as Lindsay
- Ingrid Goes West (2017) as Ingrid Thorburn
- The Little Hours (2017) as Fernanda
- Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016) as Tatiana
- Castle (2016) as Lucy (voice, uncredited)
- Great Minds with Dan Harmon (2016) as Mary Wollstonecraft
- SpongeBob SquarePants (2016) as Nocturna (voice)
- Joshy (2016) as Jen
- Dirty Grandpa (2016) as Lenore
- Golan the Insatiable (2015) as Dylan Beekler (6 episodes, voice)
- Welcome to Sweden (2014-2015) as Herself (6 episodes)
- The Driftless Area (2015) as Jean
- Addicted to Fresno (2015) as Kelly
- Parks and Recreation (2009-2015) as April Ludgate (125 episodes)
- Grumpy Cat's Worst Christmas Ever (2014) as Herself/Voice of Grumpy Cat
- The Legend of Korra (2013-2014) as Eska (12 episodes, voice)
- Playing It Cool (2014) as Mallory
- Ned Rifle (2014) as Susan Weber
- Parks and Recreation in Europe (2014) as April Ludgate (video)
- About Alex (2014) as Sarah
- Life After Beth (2014) as Beth Slocum
- Drunk History (2013) as Sacagawea
- The To Do List (2013) as Brandy Klark
- CollegeHumor Originals (2013) as Daria
- Aubrey Plaza Hates Her Aunt Debra (2013) as Herself (short)
- Maron (2013) as Herself
- Failure (2013) as Woman (short)
- Monsters University (2013) as Greek Council President (voice)
- She Said, She Said (2013) as Woman in Park (short)
- Charlie Countryman (2013) as Ashley
- A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III (2012) as Marnie
- NTSF:SD:SUV (2012) as The Rememberer
- Parks and Recreation: Dammit Jerry! (2012) as April Ludgate (video)
- It's Getting Late (2012) as Unknown Character (short)
- Portlandia (2011-2012) as Beth/Bookstore Customer (3 episodes)
- Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) as Darius
- The End of Love (2012) as Aubrey
- Home for Actresses (2011) as Aubrey (short)
- Parks and Recreation: Road Trip (2011) as April Ludgate (4 episodes)
- Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You (2011) as Jeanine Breemer
- 10 Years (2011) as Olivia
- Damsels in Distress (2011) as Depressed Debbie
- From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) as Sachiko Hirokôji (English version, voice)
- Troopers (2011) as The Princess (TV series short, 7 episodes)
- Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) as Julie Powers
- Mayne Street (2008-2009) as Robin Gibney (6 episodes)
- Funny People (2009) as Daisy Danby
- UCB Comedy Originals (2009) as Unknown Character
- Terrible Decisions with Ben Schwartz (2009) as Unknown Character (TV series short)
- Keith Powell Directs a Play (2008-2009) as Stephanie (4 episodes)
- Mystery Team (2009) as Kelly
- The Jeannie Tate Show (2007) as Unknown Character(s) (TV series short, 6 episodes)
- 30 Rock (2006) as Page
- In Love (2006) as Julie (short)
- Killswitch (2006) as Girl With Massive Head Wound (short)
External Links[]
For an up-to-date filmography, see here.