Ali Axelrad

Ali Axelrad (Alison Axelrad) is an American actor of Ashkenazi Jewish decent. Born and raised in Fullerton, California, she caught the acting bug at age four after seeing Beauty and the Beast on Broadway. Walking out of the theater, she turned to her mother and said, "I want to do that!" She made her stage debut later that year as a munchkin in a local production of The Wizard of Oz, after which she began performing professionally in theaters around Los Angeles. At age six, she started training as a classical singer and went on to study at Orange County School of the Arts. She graduated early and moved to New York City, where she performed Off-Broadway, regional houses, and National Tours. There, she studied Shakespeare with John Basil at The American Globe and trained vocally with Marianne Challis. Notable film and television credits include Mank, directed by David Fincher, alongside Gary Oldman and Amanda Seyfried (Netflix), as well as Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, written and directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino (Netflix). On stage, Ali portrayed the iconic role of Wendy Darling opposite Tony Award nominee Jenn Colella at the Stephen Sondheim Center and was a part of Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities' Ovation-nominated production of Ragtime. Ali can be heard as Marta in Yamaha's recording of The Sound of Music and as a soloist with John Buccino's hit track Grateful on the Grateful Hurricane Sandy Benefit Release. Ali loves telling stories and creating a space for people to express their vulnerability and connect in a meaningful way. She is a certified yoga instructor and specializes in teaching children with special needs. She can still perform the entire "Oz" munchkin sequence on command. Since 2009, she has been splitting her time between New York City and Los Angeles.