Lea was born in The Bronx, New York, the daughter of Edith Sarfati, a nurse, and Marc Sarfati, a delicatessen owner.[1] Michele's mother is Italian American and Catholic, while her father is of Spanish-Sephardic Jewish ancestry.[2] Michele grew up in Tenafly, New Jersey, where she attended Tenafly High School. She attended Stagedoor Manor in the Catskills, a performing arts training center. She was then later accepted to the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, but opted to continue