For her early education, Michele attended Rockland Country Day School in Congers, New York. She later adopted the stage name "Lea Michele" during her first audition for Les Misérables, choosing to drop her surname due to frequent mispronunciations and teasing. At this audition, she performed "Angel of Music" from The Phantom of the Opera—the only musical she knew at the time. Although she initially went to support a friend, Michele was cast herself, marking the beginning of her stage career.

Broadway Career and Notable Roles

Lea Michele made her Broadway debut in 1995 at the age of eight when she joined the cast of Les Misérables as the replacement for Young Cosette. She also understudied the role of Gavroche. In 1998, she played the Little Girl in the original Broadway cast of Ragtime, a role she had performed for over a year with the Toronto cast before its transfer to New York.

In 2004, Michele appeared in the Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof as Shprintze and also understudied the role of Chava. Around that same time, she was offered the role of Éponine in the revival of Les Misérables but chose instead to remain with the musical Spring Awakening, which opened on Broadway in December 2006. Her portrayal of Wendla Bergmann in Spring Awakening earned her a nomination for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical.