Before she was the Golden Globe-nominated star of Glee, Lea Michele was just "a normal kid."
Sure, just as Rachel Berry is a normal high school student.
Check out the preternaturally poised actress when she was 12, and already a veteran of Les Miserables on Broadway, talking to an MTV documentary crew about surviving the "really tough dog-eat-dog business" of the theater. Not to mention how hard it is to deal with junior high when the other kids are grilling you about showing up late and your answer is, "I'm tired. I have a show to do."
"Being in the business has kind of made me grow up so fast," mused little Lea, her chin and nose powdered to perfection. "Everyone says, you're so mature...I can do anything! And that's how I, you know, stay sane."
The dog days are over, indeed.