Andrea Alexis Parker, a native of Newport Beach, California, began her dance journey by learning to walk on the sand at a young age. Her natural grace caught the attention of her mother, Karen Macaulay, who enrolled her in ballet lessons at the age of five.
By the time Andrea was eight, she was already receiving serious classical training, and by the age of eleven, her passion for dance had become so strong that she began to spend her summers training in New York City and San Francisco.
At fifteen, Andrea's dream came true when she was invited to train full-time with the San Francisco Ballet School and perform year-round with The San Francisco Ballet Company.
However, her dance career was cut short due to her height, which proved problematic for the male ballet dancers. Andrea then moved to Los Angeles, where she studied and transitioned to contemporary dance.
She soon found herself a dance agent and began booking commercials, industrials, videos, and dance gigs, including a role in the popular TV show MARRIED WITH CHILDREN.
Andrea's talent took her from LA to New York to Europe as a professional dancer, before she returned to Hollywood to study acting.
She continued her studies while performing in several plays in Los Angeles, where her talent was recognized by the legendary Susan Smith, head of a boutique talent agency.
Andrea's first acting audition was for the Emmy-award winning SEINFELD episode "The Contest," which marked the beginning of her successful acting career.
Her breakthrough role came when she was cast as George Clooney's love interest in the global phenomenon hit series E.R. She then went on to star as the co-lead opposite David James Elliott in J.A.G., but faced disappointment when the network replaced her after the pilot episode.
Undeterred, Andrea faced down the network executives and landed her iconic starring role as Miss Parker in THE PRETENDER.
Throughout her career, Andrea has continued to showcase her versatility as an actress, taking on dramatic and comedic roles with ease. She has starred in the ABC ensemble comedy LESS THAN PERFECT, the hit series DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, and most recently, the Freeform series PRETTY LITTLE LIARS.
Andrea is married to film producer Michael Birnbaum and lives in Los Angeles.