Random Facts That Prove Aubrey Plaza Might Be April Ludgate IRL (15 items)

(#12) She Was Voted The Most Famous Person From Delaware

Plaza hails from Delaware, the second-smallest state in America. A 2018 poll gave the actress a distinct honor, naming her Delaware's Most Famous Person. Lest you think the competition wasn't too tough on that count, it's important to consider some of the people she beat out, including former Vice President Joe Biden, Oscar-nominated actress Elisabeth Shue, and rocker George Thorogood. In fact, she raked in 42% of the vote - more than the rest of the top 5 combined.

Her official statement was perfectly in line with her offbeat personality: "I'm so honored and incredibly surprised, but deep down, I feel like I've accomplished nothing. I feel empty inside."
(#11) She's Notoriously Strange On Talk Shows

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If you've ever seen Plaza on a talk show or other televised interview, you know it usually ends up being uncomfortable. Just like April, she finds enjoyment in making people a little bit afraid of her.

The actress loves awkward pauses, appearing to be bored or "out of it," and taking a slightly adversarial attitude toward her interviewer. Plaza told Elle:

I'm actually a shy person... I think that's why I'm so awkward in interviews and on late-night TV shows or whatever, because I don't really love being myself in those situations. So, I tend to play a different character or make some weird performance out of it, because that's more fun for me.
(#5) She's Married To One Of Her Directors

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Plaza has remained relatively open about her personal life. She told The Advocate, "I fall in love with girls and guys. I can't help it." In 2021, she married her longtime partner Jeff Baena, who works behind the camera as a writer and director. He's the Andy to her April.
Just as those two characters like to be creative together in the form of their alter egos Burt Macklin and Janet Snakehole, Plaza and Baena enjoy mutual creativity. The couple worked together on three feature films: Life After Beth, Joshy, and The Little Hours, in which Plaza played a foul-mouthed, frisky nun.
(#9) She's A Member Of A Basketball Team

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Basketball has played a significant role in the lives of both April Ludgate and her real-life counterpart, albeit to different levels of success. In the "Comeback Kid" episode, April books a basketball court for Leslie's political campaign rally, unaware that it's become an ice rink.

Plaza, meanwhile, is a point guard on the Pistol Shrimps, a rec-league basketball team in Los Angeles comprising women from various creative industries. The team was the subject of a 2016 documentary bearing their name, and they also have a podcast, Pistol Shrimps Radio.
(#4) She Was Named After A '70s Song By The Band Bread

On the show, April is married to Andy Dwyer, who has long been an aspiring rock star. Music has also played a significant role in Plaza's life. In the 1970s, there was a popular soft-rock band called Bread. They were best-known for the hits "Make It With You" and "Baby I'm-a Want You."

Plaza's mother was a fan of Bread, so she named her daughter after one of the group's lesser-known hits, "Aubrey."

"It's a love song - kind of - but it's kind of depressing and dark," Plaza told Elle. "She was 20 years old when she had me, so it does kind of give me an idea of what she was like back then."
(#13) She Dreamed Of Being In A Broadway Musical

Plaza grew up obsessed with Judy Garland, so she was naturally drawn to Broadway. After doing some community theater in her home state of Delaware, she begged her mother to drive her to New York City so she could audition for a stage production of Garland's classic film The Wizard of Oz, which was being staged at Madison Square Garden.

"I had no chance of getting a part - I mean, no chance in the world," Plaza told Marie Claire. "An open casting at Madison Square Garden? But I guess it just reminds me of how delusional I was at a young age, that I really believed I had a shot."