In celebration of Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor Monica Barbaro. Her portrayal of Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown), earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
At the top, we discuss how director James Mangold* *drew inspiration from Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (7:00), the vocal lessons Monica received in preparation for the role of Baez (10:15), and her affecting rendition of *House of the Rising Sun *(16:00). Then, we dive into Monica’s California upbringing (18:00), her pivot from dancing to professional acting (24:00), and the winding journey that led her to *A Complete Unknown *(29:00).
On the back-half, we talk about her breakout role in *Top Gun: Maverick *(38:00), her evolving relationship to perfectionism (39:30), the deep, autobiographical research she did to portray Joan Baez (42:00), and what she hopes for in the years to come (54:15).
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