Esther Povitsky

Esther Povitsky (born March 2, 1988), for a time known by the stage name Little Esther, is an American stand-up comedian, actress, writer, and producer. Born in Chicago to Mary and Morrie Povitsky, she grew up in the suburb of Skokie and graduated from Niles North High School in 2006. Her father is of Russian-Jewish descent and her mother of Christian Finnish descent. She is the co-creator and star of the comedy series Alone Together and starred as Izzy in the Hulu series Dollface.

After high school, Povitsky attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for three years before dropping out to pursue stand-up comedy and acting. She then studied comedy at iO Chicago and The Second City before moving to Los Angeles, where she took classes with The Groundlings, and has performed regularly at The Comedy Store, The Ice House, and The Improv. She had a recurring role as Maya on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend from 2016 until 2019, with other appearances including Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Love, and Parks and Recreation, and reached the semifinals of Last Comic Standing in 2015.

In 2015, Povitsky wrote, starred in, and produced the short film Alone Together, which was adapted into a series produced by The Lonely Island and ran for two seasons. Her debut comedy special, Hot for My Name, was released through Comedy Central on July 17, 2020. She has also hosted podcasts including Weird Adults with Little Esther and Glowing Up, and runs a fashion brand called Sleepover by Esther. She is married to comedy writer Dave King.