Lea Michele

Lea Michele Sarfati born August 29 1986 is an American actress singer and songwriter Recognized for her powerful soprano voice emotional performances and extensive Broadway background she has built a career spanning theater television film and music Michele has received numerous accolades including a Screen Actors Guild Award along with nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award two Golden Globe Awards and multiple Grammy Awards In 2010 and 2023 she was named one of Time magazines 100 most influential people in the world Born and raised in New York City Michele is of Italian and Sephardic Jewish descent She began performing professionally as a child actress on Broadway appearing in productions of Les Misérables Ragtime Fiddler on the Roof and later originating the role of Wendla Bergmann in Spring Awakening alongside Jonathan Groff Michele rose to international prominence for her portrayal of ambitious high school performer Rachel Berry on the Fox musical comedydrama Glee 20092015 Her performance became one of the defining portrayals of musical television in the 2010s and earned widespread critical acclaim including a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series as well as nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress in a Comedy Series Through the shows music releases Michele also received multiple Grammy Award nominations and contributed to numerous Billboardcharting singles and albums helping reintroduce musical television to mainstream global audiences Following the success of Glee Michele expanded into film and music She made her feature film debut in New Years Eve and signed with Columbia Records in 2012 Her debut single Cannonball was released in 2013 followed by her first studio album Louder 2014 which debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 She later released the albums Places 2017 Christmas in the City 2019 and Forever 2021 Her music combines Broadway theatricality with contemporary pop influences and is often noted for its vocal intensity and emotional delivery Outside of performance Michele has authored two books Brunette Ambition 2014 and You First Journal Your Way to Your Best Life 2015 In 2022 Michele returned to Broadway as Fanny Brice in the revival of Funny Girl delivering a critically acclaimed performance that revitalized the production and became one of the most commercially successful Broadway runs of the decade Her renditions of songs such as Dont Rain on My Parade and My Man received widespread praise from critics and audiences alike In 2025 she stars as Florence Vassy in the Broadway revival of Chess opposite Aaron Tveit and Nicholas Christopher Widely regarded as one of the leading Broadway performers of her generation Michele continues to maintain a prominent presence across theater music and screen