The Professional Performing Arts School, colloquially known as PPAS, is a public middle and high school in

Hell's Kitchen Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, 59th Street to the north, Eighth Avenue to the ea ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

PPAS was created in 1990 to meet the needs of two groups of students: those who wanted to pursue professional work in the arts as they earned a junior/senior high school diploma and those who wanted to study the arts as an

avocation An avocation is an activity that someone engages in as a hobby outside their main occupation. There are many examples of people whose professions were the ways that they made their livings, but for whom their activities outside their workplaces ...

Notable alumni

* Eddie Alderson, actor (

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

nominee for ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'') * Kristen Alderson, actress (

winner for ''

'') *

Nadia Azzi Nadia Azzi (born August 11, 1998 in Dunedin, Florida) is an American classical pianist of Lebanese-Japanese origin. Fluent in Japanese and English, she began playing piano at age four and a half and has won many awards since then. She currently ...

, pianist *

Morena Baccarin Morena Silva de Vaz Setta Baccarin (; born 2 June 1979) is a Brazilian actress known for portraying Inara Serra in the sci-fi series '' Firefly'' and its follow-up film '' Serenity'', Vanessa in the superhero comedy franchise ''Deadpool'', Jes ...

, actress (''

Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...

'',

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

nominee for ''

Homeland A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethn ...

'') *

Andrea Bowen Andrea Bowen is an American actress and singer. She began her career appearing on Broadway musicals, including ''Les Misérables'' and ''The Sound of Music''. In 2004, she began playing the role of Julie Mayer on the ABC comedy-drama series ''Des ...

, actress (''

Desperate Housewives ''Desperate Housewives'' is an American comedy-drama soap opera television series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012, for a t ...

'', ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

'') *

Tru Collins Trudy "Tru" Collins is an American actress and indie-pop singer. She is known for her role of Julie on MTV's original high school comedy, ''Awkward''. Early life and education Tru was born in Richmond, Virginia, to five-time Emmy Award winning ...

, singer and actor (

Trans-Siberian Orchestra Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is an American rock band founded in 1996 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli (both members of Savatage) and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel ...

) *

Lana Condor Lana Therese Condor (born Trần Đồng Lan; May 11, 1997) is an American actress, producer, and singer. She made her acting debut starring as Jubilee in the superhero film '' X-Men: Apocalypse'' (2016), and gained international recognition f ...

, actress ( ''To All the Boys I've Loved Before'') * Monét X Change, drag queen, singer (''

Rupaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, VH1 (season 9–14) and, beginning with the f ...

'', '' RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'') *

Billy Crawford Billy Joe Ledesma Crawford (born May 16, 1982) is a Filipino actor, musician, singer, dancer, comedian and television host who released 7 studio albums and has had a number of singles, notably "Trackin'", "When You Think About Me" (a remake of ...

, singer, actor and television Host ('' It's Showtime'') * Julia Cumming, singer, songwriter, bassist ('' Sunflower Bean''), model and activist *

Claire Danes Claire Catherine Danes (born April 12, 1979) is an American actress. She is the recipient of three Primetime Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. In 2012, '' Time'' named her one of the 100 most influenti ...

, actress (''

My So-Called Life ''My So-Called Life'' is an American teen drama television series created by Winnie Holzman and produced by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. It originally aired on ABC from August 25, 1994, to January 26, 1995. It is distributed by The B ...

'',

winner for ''

'') *

Melonie Diaz Melonie Diaz (born April 25, 1984) is an American film and television actress who has appeared in many independent films, including four shown at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. She received Independent Spirit Awards nominations for performance ...

, actress (''

Raising Victor Vargas ''Raising Victor Vargas'' is a 2002 American comedy-drama film directed by Peter Sollett, written by Sollett and Eva Vives. The film follows Victor, a Lower East Side teenager, as he deals with his eccentric family, including his strict grandmothe ...

'', ''

Fruitvale Station ''Fruitvale Station'' is a 2013 American biographical drama film written and directed by Ryan Coogler. It is Coogler's feature directorial debut and is based on the events leading to the death of Oscar Grant, a young man killed in 2009 by Bay ...

'') * Max Ehrich, actor and dancer (

nominee for ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...

'') *

Jesse Eisenberg Jesse Adam Eisenberg (; born October 5, 1983) is an American actor, writer, and director. He has received various accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. ...

, actor (

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nominee for '' The Social Network'') *

Jessica Lee Goldyn Jessica Lee Goldyn (born December 26, 1985) is an American Broadway actress who performed in the revival of ''A Chorus Line'' as Val. She played the lead role of Cassie from August 10, 2008 opposite Mario Lopez who played the character Zack, until ...

, actress and dancer (''

A Chorus Line ''A Chorus Line'' is a 1975 musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is centered on seventeen Broadway dancers ...

'') *

Sarah Hyland Sarah Jane Hyland (born November 24, 1990) is an American actress and singer. Born in Manhattan, she attended the Professional Performing Arts School before having small roles in the films '' Private Parts'' (1997), '' Annie'' (1999) and '' Bl ...

, actress (''

Modern Family ''Modern Family'' is an American family sitcom television series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan for the American Broadcasting Company. It ran for 11 seasons, from September 23, 2009, to April 8, 2020. It follows the lives of th ...

'', '' Lipstick Jungle'') *

Paul Iacono Paul Stanley Iacono (born September 7, 1988) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying RJ Berger in the MTV scripted series ''The Hard Times of RJ Berger''. Early years Iacono was born in Secaucus, New Jersey, to Italian American pa ...

, actor and director (''

The Hard Times of RJ Berger ''The Hard Times of RJ Berger'' is an American television sitcom created by David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith for MTV. The show's central character is RJ Berger ( Paul Iacono), an unpopular sophomore at the fictional Pinkerton High School ...

'', '' Fame'') * Mark Indelicato, actor (''

Ugly Betty ''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which was originally broadcast on ABC. It premiered on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombi ...

'', '' White Bird in a Blizzard'') *

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

, actress, singer and pianist (multiple

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

winner) * Christy Knowings, actor, musician, writer and dancer (''

All That ''All That'' is an American sketch comedy television series created by Brian Robbins and Mike Tollin. The series originally aired on Nickelodeon from April 16, 1994, to October 22, 2005, lasting ten seasons, and was produced by Tollin/Robbins ...

'', ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000 ...

'') *

Jake Lucas Jake Lucas is an American child actor with credits in musical theatre, film and television. After appearances in the children's chorus of the Metropolitan Opera and in other musicals on and off-Broadway, he appeared as Louis Leonowens in the 2015 B ...

, actor (Broadway production of ''

Newsies ''Newsies'' (released as ''The News Boys'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1992 American musical historical comedy-drama film produced by Walt Disney Pictures and directed by choreographer Kenny Ortega in his film directing debut. Loosely based on t ...

'', '' Peter Pan Live!'', the 2015 Broadway revival of ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the chil ...

'') * Gregori Lukas, singer and dancer (''

Recording Artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wr ...

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaik ...

'',

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company ...

) * Paul McGill, actor and dancer (''

Bullets Over Broadway ''Bullets Over Broadway'' is a 1994 American black comedy crime film directed by Woody Allen, written by Allen and Douglas McGrath and starring an ensemble cast including John Cusack, Dianne Wiest, Chazz Palminteri and Jennifer Tilly. The fil ...

'', '' Fame'') *

Taylor Momsen Taylor Michel Momsen (born July 26, 1993) is an American musician, singer, model, and former actress. Prior to her retirement from acting, she portrayed the character of Cindy Lou Who in the film '' How the Grinch Stole Christmas'' (2000) and Je ...

, actress and singer (''

Gossip Girl ''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series based on the novel series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series, developed for television by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, ran on The CW network for six sea ...

'', The Pretty Reckless) *

Asher Monroe Asher Monroe Book (born September 18, 1988), known professionally as Asher Monroe, is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor. In 2006, after starring in an extensive run of national tours including ''The Sound of Music'', ''Oliver!'', ...

, actor, dancer and singer ( V Factory, '' Fame'') *

Christian Navarro Christian Lee Navarro (born August 21, 1991) is an American actor known for playing Tony Padilla in the Netflix series ''13 Reasons Why''. He also had a recurring role in the HBO series ''Vinyl'' as he works on other movie projects such as ''Ca ...

, actor (''

Vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

'', ''

13 Reasons Why ''13 Reasons Why'' is an American teen drama television series developed for Netflix by Brian Yorkey and based on the 2007 novel ''Thirteen Reasons Why'' by author Jay Asher. The series revolves around high school student Clay Jensen (Dylan M ...

'') *

Eric Nelsen Eric Nelsen (born June 26, 1991) is an Emmy and Tony Award-winning American actor and producer. He is known for his work as an actor in the television series ''1883''. On stage, Nelsen portrayed Brett Sampson in the original Broadway production ...

, actor and dancer (''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2013, via Hulu, Hulu Plus, and ...

'', '' 13: The Musical'') *

Connor Paolo Connor Paolo (born July 11, 1990) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Eric van der Woodsen on The CW's teen drama series ''Gossip Girl'' and Declan Porter on the ABC drama series ''Revenge''. He has also appeared in two Oliver S ...

, actor (''

'', ''

Revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." P ...

'') *

Karina Pasian Karina Pasian (born July 18, 1991) is an American singer. Life and career Karina Pasian was born in New York City and is of Dominican descent. Her first language was Russian, and she can sing in six other languages, including English, Spanis ...

, singer and pianist (

nominee for ''

First Love First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

'') *

Josh Peck Joshua Michael Peck (born November 10, 1986) is an American actor and comedian. Peck began his career as a child actor in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and had an early role on the Nickelodeon sitcom ''The Amanda Show'' from 2000 to 2002. Peck ...

, actor and comedian (''

Drake & Josh ''Drake & Josh'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider for Nickelodeon. The series follows two teenage stepbrothers Drake Parker ( Drake Bell) and Josh Nichols ( Josh Peck) as they live together despite opposite personalities. The ...

'', ''

The Amanda Show ''The Amanda Show'' is an American live action sketch comedy and variety show television series created by Dan Schneider that aired on Nickelodeon from October 16, 1999 to September 21, 2002. It starred Amanda Bynes, Drake Bell, and Nancy ...

'') * Justin Peck, dancer and choreographer (

) * Danielle Polanco, dancer and choreographer ( ''Step Up'' film series) * Victor Rasuk, actor (''

How to Make it in America ''How to Make It in America'' is an American comedy-drama television series that ran on HBO from February 14, 2010, to November 20, 2011. The series follows the lives of Ben Epstein ( Bryan Greenberg) and his friend Cam Calderon ( Victor Rasuk) a ...

'', ''Fifty Shades'' film series) *

Alisa Reyes Alisa Adriana Reyes is an American actress, best known for three seasons that she appeared on Nickelodeon's ''All That'' (1994–97) and providing the voice of LaCienega Boulevardez in the Disney Channel original series, ''The Proud Family'' (200 ...

, actress (''

'', ''

The Proud Family ''The Proud Family'' is an American animated television series created by Bruce W. Smith that originally ran on Disney Channel from September 15, 2001, to August 19, 2005. A revival, known as '' The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder'', was announ ...

'') *

Elena Satine Elena Satine (born November 24, 1987) is a Georgian-American actress and singer. On television, she has been featured as a series regular on the Starz period drama '' Magic City'' (2012–2013), the ABC drama ''Revenge'' (2014–2015), and the ...

, actress and singer ('' Magic City'', ''

'') *

Max Schneider Maxwell George Schneider (born June 21, 1992), also known by his mononym MAX, is an American singer-songwriter, actor and model, signed to Arista and Sony RED. In 2018, MAX's single " Lights Down Low" went double platinum in the US, Platinum ...

, singer and actor (''

How To Rock ''How to Rock'' is an American teen sitcom that ran on Nickelodeon from February 4 to December 8, 2012. It stars singer Cymphonique Miller, who previously sang the theme song for Nickelodeon's ''Winx Club''. The series is based on the 2011 book ...

'', '' Rags'') *

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage producti ...

, singer and dancer (

winner) *

Rebecca Harrell Tickell Rebecca Reynolds Tickell (née Harrell; born March 2, 1980) is a producer, director, actress, singer, and environmental activist. Acting career Rebecca Harrell starred in the Christmas film '' Prancer''. She garnered a Young Artist Award no ...

, actress, producer and director ('' Prancer'', ''

FUEL A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy b ...

'', '' The Big Fix'') *

Addison Timlin Addison Jayne Timlin (born June 29, 1991) is an American actress, best known for her roles as Jami Lerner in ''The Town That Dreaded Sundown'' (2014) and Colleen Lunsford in '' Little Sister'' (2016). She is also known for playing Sasha Bingham i ...

, actress ('' Derailed'', '' Zero Hour'') * Louie Torrellas, actor and comedian (''

Sponk! ''Sponk!'' is a children's television game show produced by Sesame Workshop and Insight Productions for the Noggin channel. It was Sesame Workshop's first original production for Noggin, which began as a joint venture between Sesame Workshop an ...

'', ''

Jumper Jumper or Jumpers may refer to: Clothing *Jumper (sweater), a long-sleeve article of clothing; also called a top, pullover, or sweater **A waist-length top garment of dense wool, part of the Royal Navy uniform and the Uniforms of the United State ...

'') * Chris Trousdale, actor and singer ('' The Biggest Fan'',

Dream Street Dream Street were an American pop music, pop boy band that was formed in 1999 by Louis Baldonieri and Brian Lukow. The band disbanded in 2002 following a legal dispute between parents of the band members and the band's managers. History The ...

) *

Daniel Ulbricht This is a list of New York City Ballet dancers. Principal dancers Soloists This is a list of New York City Ballet soloists. Corps de ballet The following is a list of the current members of the corps de ballet. * Victor Abreu * Devin Albe ...

, dancer (

) *

Jamila Velazquez Jamila Velazquez (born November 27, 1995) is an American singer and actress, best known for her recurring roles as Sarita in the ABC Family series ''Twisted'' (2013–2014) and as Laura Calleros on FOX's primetime musical-drama series ''Empire'' ...

, actor (''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'', '' Twisted'') *

Malina Weissman Malina Weissman (born March 12, 2003) is an American actress and model, best known for playing the roles of Violet Baudelaire in the Netflix series ''A Series of Unfortunate Events'', young April O'Neil in ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' and y ...

, actress (''

A Series of Unfortunate Events ''A Series of Unfortunate Events'' is a series of thirteen children's novels written by American author Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket. The books follow the turbulent lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire. After their ...

'') *

Jeremy Allen White Jeremy Allen White (born February 17, 1991) is an American actor. He is best known for his long-running role as Phillip "Lip" Gallagher on the Showtime dramedy series '' Shameless'' (2011–2021). He has also appeared in the first season of the ...

, actor ('' Shameless'', '' Twelve'') * Lee Thompson Young, actor (''

The Famous Jett Jackson ''The Famous Jett Jackson'' is a coming-of-age television series for the Disney Channel. The show is about a boy named Jett Jackson (Lee Thompson Young) who plays a teenage secret agent on a fictional show-within-a-show called ''Silverstone''. P ...

'') *

Aubrey Joseph Aubrey Omari Joseph (born November 26, 1997) is an American actor best known for his role as Tyrone Johnson / Cloak in Freeform's '' Cloak & Dagger''. Career Aubrey started acting on the stage, portraying Simba in the Broadway musical ''The Li ...

, actor (

Cloak and Dagger "Cloak and dagger" was a fighting style common in the Renaissance involving a knife hidden beneath a cloak. The term later came into use as a metaphor, referring to situations involving intrigue, secrecy, espionage, or mystery. Overview In "The ...

) * Ben Cook, Broadway actor * Dominique Thorne, actress (''

If Beale Street Could Talk ''If Beale Street Could Talk'' is a 1974 novel by American writer James Baldwin. His fifth novel (and 13th book overall), it is a love story set in Harlem in the early 1970s. The title is a reference to the 1916 W.C. Handy blues song "Beale St ...

, Judas and the Black Messiah)''

References

{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1990 Public high schools in Manhattan Schools of the performing arts in the United States Public middle schools in Manhattan Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan 1990 establishments in New York City