Monica Barbaro is back on Splitting Up Together. The second season began last week and Barbaro was back on the show in her role as Lisa Apple.
During the show’s first season, Apple was introduced during the episode called Nevertheless…She Went Clubbing. While Lena, played by Jenna Fischer, wants to set a good example for her kids, her estranged husband Martin, played by Oliver Hudson, starts dating Lisa.
And Lisa Apple has the kind of charm that only Monica Barbaro can bring to the character. She has the iconic big round glasses, she’s sweet and the children love her. But who is the woman behind the character?
Monica Barbaro was born in San Francisco and raised in Mill Valley, California. While she has an impressive acting career in television, her dream wasn’t always to be an actress. She’s actually trained in ballet and has studied ballroom dancing, including modern dance, salsa, flamenco, and West African dance. She even attended New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts where she took her first acting classes while getting her bachelor of fine arts degree in dance. That class appeared to spark something in her, as she began pursuing a career as an actor.
After university, Barbaro pursued more acting classes, studying in San Francisco and Los Angeles, including the Beverly Hills Playhouse.
Even though she may start to appear on Splitting Up Together more this season, she is also known for other shows, including Chicago P.D. There, she played Anna Valdez during the 2016-2017 season of the show. S
he also played this character on Chicago Justice in 2017 and played Yael on UnREAL in 2016. Between 2012 and 2016, Monica starred in various short films and had one-episode appearances on various television shows.
Barbaro tends to keep her personal life private, possibly because she wants to keep some distance between her work and home life. On her Instagram account, she did share a photo from her brother’s wedding back in June last year, revealing that she has a brother and loves her sister-in-law. However, she hasn’t confirmed whether she’s dating, engaged or married.
Monica Barbaro is currently filming Top Gun: Maverick, but there are currently no details about her role in the movie.
Splitting Up Together airs Tuesdays at 9:30/8:30c on ABC.