Esther Lauren Povitsky is an American comedian, actress, writer, and producer. She was born on March 2, 1988 in Skokie, Illinois . Growing up she became interested in TV, video games, film and Broadway musicals. In high school she performed sketch comedy at the Second City teen program. She went on to attend the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign majoring in dance before switching to theater. She eventually dropped out to pursue a career as a comedian having been inspired by Maris Branford. She honed her craft with iO Chicago, The Second City and The Groundlings. Esther moved to Los Angeles and made a name for herself on the stand up circuit. She adopted the stage name "Little Esther" and performed at such venues such as The Comedy Store, The Ice House, and The Improv. She created content on YouTube and at the same time hosted several podcasts. In 2015 she competed in "Last Comic Standing" and also filmed "Alone Together", a short film she wrote, produced and starred. The film was adapted for a pilot on Freeform and ultimately picked up to series. That year Esther was also cast on The CW musical comedy "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" as "Maya", a role she did until the end of the series.
