Federer is the daughter of John and Claudia Federer. She grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio,[1] where she was a student of the Shaker Heights High School Theatre Arts Department under the direction of James Thornton,[2] and she gained early experience working in the University School Theater Program, where she first worked and became friends with future Wicked castmate Michael Seelbach. Federer’s father was a math teacher in the Shaker Heights Public School System teaching at Byron Junior High School (now Shaker Heights Middle School) and currently teaches at the Mandel Jewish Day School. As a teen, Federer attended Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Camp, located in Loch Sheldrake, New York.[3] She graduated from Ithaca College, located in Ithaca, New York, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in musical theatre.