Dara Reneé (born November 7, 2000) is an American actress whose roles include Kourtney Greene in the

Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...

mockumentary series '' High School Musical: The Musical: The Series''.

Early life

Reneé was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, and raised in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

where her mother, Kimberly Brooks, founded a non-profit performing arts school, Encouraging Youth To Dream, in Pikesville. Brooks is a voice actress, and Reneé's grandmother was a member of 1960s Baltimore soul group

The Royalettes The Royalettes (also credited as Sheila Ross and her Royalettes) were a four-girl group from Baltimore, Maryland who exemplified the "sweet soul" style of the mid-60s. They were originally signed with Philadelphia-based Chancellor Records and lat ...

. Reneé attended John Paul Regional Catholic School in Milford Mill. She initially tried auditioning for theater roles in New York before moving back to California to finish high school at

Charter High School of the Arts Charter High of the Arts Multimedia and Performing (or CHAMPS) is a public high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondar ...

(CHAMPS) in Van Nuys.

Career

Reneé debuted with the role of Savannah in the 2018

Disney Channel Original Movie Many television films have been produced for Disney Channel, an American family-oriented basic cable channel and former premium television channel since its launch on April 18, 1983. Until October 1997, films were released under the banner na ...

Freaky Friday ''Freaky Friday'' is a comedic children's novel written by Mary Rodgers, first published by Harper & Row in 1972. It has been adapted for several films, including versions in 1976, 1995, 2003, and 2018, and was reinterpreted as a horror film f ...

''. In 2019, she had a recurring role as Stunts in the fifth season of the

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

series ''

Black-ish ''Black-ish'' (stylized as black·''ish'', `black·''ish'', and black''ish'') is an American sitcom television series created by Kenya Barris. It aired on ABC from September 24, 2014, to April 19, 2022, running for eight seasons. ''Black-ish'' ...

''. She also had a guest role in '' The Kids Are Alright''. Reneé stars in the

series '' High School Musical: The Musical: The Series'' as Kourtney, a student costume designer and Nini's best friend. The series premiered in November 2019. Reneé had auditioned for the roles of Ashlyn, Gina, and Kourtney; Kourtney was originally intended to be a one-off character, but Reneé was invited to become a series regular. She created the series' arrangement of "

Bop to the Top ''High School Musical'' is the soundtrack of the Disney Channel Original Movie of the same name. Recorded in five days, it was released on January 10, 2006, and became the best selling album of that year, having sold more than 3.7 million copie ...

". Starting in season 2 of the series, her own mother played her character Kourtney's mother, Michelle. In 2021, it was announced that she would host ''Disney's Magic Bake-Off'' with ''

Raven's Home ''Raven's Home'' is an American family sitcom television series developed by Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas that premiered on Disney Channel on July 21, 2017. The series stars Raven-Symoné, Issac Ryan Brown, Navia Robinson, Jason Maybaum, Sky K ...

'' star

Issac Ryan Brown Issac Ryan Brown (born July 12, 2005) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Booker in the Disney Channel sitcom ''Raven's Home'', which earned him a nomination at the 48th Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Prin ...

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reneé, Dara Living people 2000 births 21st-century American actresses African-American actresses American television actresses Actresses from Baltimore Actresses from California 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women