She began training in ballet at an early age, and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance from New York University.

[5][2][3] Barbaro was born in San Francisco and grew up in Mill Valley, California, where she graduated from Tamalpais High School in 2007.

[14] In 2018, Barbaro also played Cora Vasquez on Netflix's The Good Cop, alongside Josh Groban and Tony Danza.

[15] In the 2022 blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, Barbaro portrayed Lieutenant Natasha "Phoenix" Trace, a naval aviator.

[17] Barbaro, a professional dancer, was able to lend her talents in a scene that involved the two leads dancing a combination of salsa and the tango.

[18] In 2024, she played activist and folk singer Joan Baez in the James Mangold-directed Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet.