Meet Rachel Axelrod

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Axelrod.

Rachel, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My mother isn’t a funny woman. But she sure knows what funny is. From a very young age, she introduced me to all things comedy. SNL, George Carlin, the best of 80s comedies like Mr. Mom, Stripes, Vacation, a bunch of Mel Brooks and more SNL. It was pretty quick that I knew I wanted to be an actor and if I could make the masses laugh, then I could be like all those great people that made me and my mom laugh in the ‘burbs of NJ.

My childhood bedroom had this beautiful oval mirror, with a white wooden frame, straight out of Snow White. And I would look in the mirror, take the bottom of the hairbrush and give my acceptance speech for the Oscar. (I still do this but without the mirror and with the remote control). I was six. How I wish I remembered who I was thanking at six years old. Around the same time, I landed my first role-playing the Wicked Witch of the West in my camp’s rendition of “The Wizard of Oz.” No, seriously, you haven’t seen a better witch. My witch may have been better than the original. Anyhoo, after that, the bug had bitten. In junior high and high school, I was in all of the plays.

I was accepted into a performing arts high school, a conservatory after that, and then moved to NYC once I graduated college where comedy became more of a focus. I started stand-up, improv and met a lot of inspirational and talented, funny people along the way who made me better. But ever since I was a little girl, I had a real pull for Hollywood. I had to come out here. Plus, the apartments here come with dishwashers. Just sayin’. So, I came, landed an agent, some managers, a couple of TV shows, a horror flick and a pilot. It didn’t happen all at once. In fact, it felt like forever for anything to happen. But it happened.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I think any artist, regardless of what the artistry is, doesn’t get a smooth road. Maybe Emma Stone. Emma Stone may have had a smooth road. But being a creative is tricky because it takes over. It becomes who you are. It’s your identity. And it’s all you want to do. I mean, if you’re truly all in, if it is truly organic, then it is all you want to be. But how do you pay the rent? How do you get people to know you exist? How do you get to the place where the work is better and more often? It’s tricky. And it can be a real heartbreak.

Because I came from parents with a very serious work ethic, I got a real job right out of college. I became an executive assistant which couldn’t be more against the grain if I tried. But it paid the bills, gave me health insurance, and it offered stability. But it was soul-crushing to say the least. When you want to be in front of a camera or on a stage, living your heart out by playing pretend, the thought of going into the break room to wish Sheila a happy birthday is beyond defeating.

And then there’s the quiet. Ooooh, the quiet. I have hated the quiet so much. When there aren’t any emails or calls or audition notices. When weeks pass, maybe even months, without a peep and you wonder, will this ever change? When? How? And what happens if it doesn’t? In those times I would get so disappointed and confused. It was such a far cry from where my career was supposed to be according to that six years old in the mirror.

Here we are, in the thick of a business where you have such little control, where so many people have to say yes, where my your team really needs to be on task, where I you need to be on task and through it all,  you may still come up empty. But I have to pick myself up and feel good about myself as much as I can. And that’s a real challenge.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m an actor who specializes in comedy and folks know me for that. I love drama, I can do drama. But comedy is where my heart is. I’ve always been a goofball, a silly goose, the class clown. I don’t think I’ve ever grown up and dare I say, I think people may like me for that reason. And I’m proud of that. I’m proud that vanity and insecurity doesn’t get in the way of me being outwardly playful and silly. I’m proud that I can deliver a line in seven different ways and make people laugh each time. I am proud that I have a quick wit and can improvise dialogue into a script that works super well. It’s really fun and helpful to have comedy in your wheelhouse.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My plans are to become a household name, to make the masses laugh, to have that hairbrush and remote control turn into a microphone. I want to fill a void that people didn’t know they had.

Contact Info:

• Email: Agent: Kazarian/Measure/Ruskin & Associates 818-769-9111,
  Manager: Freeze Frame Entertainment 310-362-3262
  [email protected]

   
Image Credit:
The CW, David Muller

Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.