Rothe was born in Denver, Colorado, the daughter of Susan and Steve Rothenberg. Rothe's father is Jewish. Her grandmother, Colleen Rothenberg was a theatre Actress who belonged to the Congregation Shomrei Torah synagogue in Santa Rosa. She took ballet classes when she was 8. When she was little she attended summer theater camps in Kansas City. Rothe graduated from Boston University in 2009 with a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, and during that time she learned to play the violin, tap dance and make pottery.