Biography
Who is Lea Michele?
Early life and education
Lea Michele Sarfati was born on August 29, 1986, in The Bronx, New York. Her parents are Edith Thomasina, a retired nurse, and Mark David Sarfati, a real estate agent. Until the age of four, she lived in the Bronx before her family relocated to Tenafly, New Jersey. The family also maintained an apartment in Manhattan for when she performed on Broadway.
For her education, she attended Rockland Country Day School in Congers, New York, for elementary school and later went to Tenafly High School. At Tenafly High School, she participated in the volleyball and debate teams while also singing in the school choir. During her teenage years, she worked part-time at a bat mitzvah dress shop and helped out at her father's deli when she was not performing on stage.
Broadway beginnings
Lea Michele began her professional career at a young age as a child actress on Broadway. In 1995, at age eight, she made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the role of Cosette in Les Misérables. She also worked as an understudy for the role of Gavroche and later appeared as the Little Girl in the original 1998 Broadway cast of Ragtime.
She continued her stage career by portraying Shprintze in the 2004 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Following this, she originated the role of Wendla Bergmann in the musical Spring Awakening, appearing in early workshops and Off-Broadway performances before the production transferred to Broadway in 2006. For her work in Spring Awakening, she received a nomination for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical.
Glee and mainstream success
From 2009 to 2015, Lea starred as Rachel Berry, the female lead and star singer in the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The role was created specifically for her by co-creator Ryan Murphy. Her performance earned her numerous accolades, including a Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy, along with nominations for a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.
In addition to her television work, she contributed vocals to music recorded for Glee, which produced multiple hit singles on the Billboard charts. Her cover of The All-American Rejects song Gives You Hell reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2010, she was included in Time magazine's list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World and received Billboard's first-ever Triple Threat Award.
Music and later stage roles
In 2012, she signed a recording contract with Columbia Records and released her debut single Cannonball in 2013. Her debut studio album, Louder, followed in 2014 and debuted at number four on the United States Billboard 200 chart. She subsequently released several other albums, including Places in 2017, Christmas in the City in 2019, and Forever in 2021. She also published two books titled Brunette Ambition and You First: Journal Your Way to Your Best Life.
Returning to Broadway in 2022, she starred as Fanny Brice in the musical revival of Funny Girl, earning widespread acclaim for her performance. She later starred as Florence in the 2025 Broadway revival of Chess alongside Aaron Tveit and Nicholas Christopher, performing in the production until June 21, 2026.
Birthday and age
Lea Michele was born on August 29, 1986, which makes Lea 40 years old today. That birthday falls under the Virgo sign. Lea shares the date with 23 other famous people.
Explore more
