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Darren Everett Criss
Darren Everett Criss (born February 5, 1987) is an American actor, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, and composer. He is also a founding member and co-owner of StarKid Productions, a media and musical theater production company based in Chicago. He is best known for portraying Blaine Anderson, an openly gay high school student, on the FOX television series Glee. Criss first garnered attention playing the lead role of Harry Potter in StarKid's musical productions of A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter Sequel. In January 2012, he made his Broadway debut, starring as J. Pierrepont Finch in the revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Born Darren Everett Criss February 5, 1987 (age 25) San Francisco, California, U.S. Alma mater University of Michigan Occupation Actor, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, composer, co-owner of StarKid Productions Years active 1997–present Website www.darrencriss.com

Early life and education Criss was born in San Francisco, California, the youngest son of Cerina (née Bru) and Charles William Criss, a banker and a former director of the San Francisco Opera, the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, the Stern Grove Festival, and San Francisco Performances.[1] Criss is Eurasian – his mother, a native of Cebu, Philippines, is of Chinese, Spanish, and Filipino descent, while his father, a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is of Irish descent.[1][2] He has an older brother named Charles "Chuck" Criss (born April 15, 1985), a musician and member of the indie rock band Freelance Whales.[3] Criss and his brother were raised in San Francisco, except from 1988 to 1992, when the family relocated to Honolulu, Hawaii, and their father started the East West Bank, serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.[1][4] Criss' interest in music and the performing arts started in his early childhood — at the age of five, he began taking violin lessons, and, at ten, he was accepted into the Young Conservatory program of the American Conservatory Theater; concurrently, he made his professional stage debut, performing at the musical theater company 42nd Street Moon.[5][6][7] Criss later became a multi-instrumentalist, mastering the violin, guitar, piano, cello, mandolin, harmonica, and drums, and he began composing songs by the age of fifteen.[8][9][10][11][12] Criss completed his elementary education at Stuart Hall for Boys, and then later graduated from Saint Ignatius College Preparatory in 2005; both are private Catholic schools located in the San Francisco Bay Area.[13] During his time at Saint Ignatius, he was a member of various clubs, including the school government and the performing arts program, for which he was awarded the "Theater Arts Leadership" and the "Fine Arts" awards.[14][15] Criss was also a violinist in the school orchestra, where he held the position of concertmaster.[16][17] Academically, he received the National Latin Exam Award in 2002 (Maxima Cum Laude) and 2003 (Magna Cum Laude).[18] Criss majored in Theater Performance at the University of Michigan (he additionally pursued minors in Musicology and Italian, until opting out prior to graduation), and obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2009.[19][13] Acting career For a list of acting credits by Criss, click here. Theater Criss made his professional stage debut at the age of ten in 42nd Street Moon's 1997 production of Fanny, in the role of Cesario.[20] The next year, Criss played Mauro in the same company's production of the Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim musical Do I Hear a Waltz?, followed by Babes in Arms in 1999, in which he played Beauregard Calhoun.[21][22] Criss spent his formative years at the American Conservatory Theater, studying theater performance and appearing in a number of plays, notably A Christmas Carol, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and The Voysey Inheritance.[7] He continued to hone his craft at St. Ignatius College Preparatory, taking on roles in classics such as The Music Man, The Diary of Anne Frank, and Fiddler on the Roof.[23] From 2005 to 2009, while attending the University of Michigan, Criss took part in numerous stage productions, including Pride and Prejudice, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, A Few Good Men, and The Cripple of Inishmaan.[23] He was also a participant in Basement Arts, the university's student-run theater organization, as both an actor and director.[24] In the spring of 2008, he spent a semester abroad in Arezzo, Italy, studying Commedia dell'arte, among other theater-related subjects, at the Accademia dell'Arte .[25][26] In 2009, after receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts, Criss, along with his friends and fellow classmates from the University of Michigan, founded StarKid Productions, a media and musical theater production company.[27] His most prominent acting role with StarKid is that of Harry Potter in the YouTube viral musicals A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter Sequel. Both productions are musical-comedies based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.[28] StarKid's plays have been viewed more than 100 million times on the company's YouTube channel, since its launch on June 19, 2009.[29] In January 2012, Criss made his Broadway debut, replacing Daniel Radcliffe in the role of J. Pierrepont Finch in the revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, for a three-week engagement at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.[30] His stint proved to be a success – aside from Daniel Radcliffe's final week, the musical had the three most lucrative weeks of its 11-month run with Criss in the lead role, grossing over four million dollars.[31] Television