Lea Michele has gleefully proven, once and for all, that she can indeed read, contrary to the “wild” internet conspiracy theory.
The Bronx-born, Jersey-bred Broadway star, 38, shut down the long-held, sometimes “frustrating,” rumor while appearing on the “Therapuss with Jake Shane” podcast Wednesday.
“I was a national debater in New Jersey. Like, Bergen County champion debater over here,” said Michele. “We crushed. … I loved the debate team. For everyone who thinks that I can’t f–king read, like, I was on the debate team! I mean, I would, like, write speeches.”
Asked whether she’s entertained by the viral theory or ticked off, the “Funny Girl” star said “it depends on the day.”
“There are moments where I f–king get so frustrated by it, because I’m one of the only women in my whole family to get accepted to college,” she said, describing her mother’s upbringing as “extremely poor.”
Michele said her family relocated to the Garden State so she could “get a good education and to thrive.
“And I did. And my parents and my family are so proud of that. … And so for someone to minimize that, it’s like so sad and so frustrating,” she said. “But yeah, I don’t know, it’s wild.”
Michele then grabbed Shane’s notecards with listeners’ questions to read them, clarifying she “didn’t memorize it. Jonathan [Groff] is not here to read me this s–t.”
Groff, her best friend and former “Glee” and “Spring Awakening” co-star, also cracked up when he shut down the rumor on an October episode of the “Tactful Pettiness” podcast.
