Mamet was born in Randolph, Vermont. She is the daughter of American playwright, essayist, screenwriter, and film director David Mamet and actress Lindsay Crouse. Her father is Jewish and her mother is Buddhist, and Mamet identifies as Jewish as well.

Her maternal grandfather was playwright Russel Crouse and her maternal great-grandfather was educator John Erskine. She has a sister, Willa, who is a singer, and two half-siblings, Clara, who is also an actress and director, and Noah.

David Mamet, in full David Alan Mamet, (born November 30, 1947, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.), American playwright, director, and screenwriter noted for his often desperate working-class characters and for his distinctive, colloquial, and frequently profane dialogue.

Mamet began writing plays while attending Goddard College, Plainfield, Vermont (B.A. 1969). Returning to Chicago, where many of his plays were first staged, he worked at various factory jobs, at a real-estate agency, and as a taxi driver; all these experiences provided the background for his plays. In 1973 he co-founded a theatre company in Chicago