Childhood & Early Life
Monica Raymund was born on July 26, 1986, in St. Petersburg, Florida, to Sonia and Steve Raymund. Her father was a businessman, who had worked as the former CEO of Tech Data Corp., a successful computer components and software distributing company. It was her mother whose profession was directly related to performance arts, which sparked Monica’s interest in the field. She was the co-founder of the Soulful Arts Dance Company.
Her father was a German and Easter European Jewish by ancestry and regularly attended Reform Judaism temple. Her mother on the other hand, hailed from Dominican Republic and was a native from the Caribbean Islands.
Monica hails from a highly influential household with a paternal grandfather named Edward C. Raymund, who was a famous businessman and philanthropist.
Monica was the older child in the family and had a younger brother growing up, named Will, who had learned music from Berklee College of Music and later worked as a sound and lighting engineer. He passed away on August 2015.
Monica grew up getting enchanted by performance arts but had an initial interest in learning music. She began taking piano lessons when she was 5 years old, which resulted in her taking singing classes over the years. Overtime she began performing on-stage and as a kid, she also participated in many musical theatrical productions during her early school years.
She carried on with her passion for arts during her middle school and high school years as well. However, it was during her high school years that she developed a keen interest in acting. She participated in Tampa’s ‘Broadway Theatre Project’ and following her high school graduation, she enrolled into Juilliard School in New York City to further receive training in acting.
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Career
While she was receiving training in acting at the Juilliard School, she began her stage career appearing in Broadways such as ‘Cymbeline,’ ‘The Diviners’ and ‘Animal Farm.’ She earned immense experience through these stage performances and as she was out of Juilliard School, she had already begun auditioning for roles in films and television.
She also played the lead role in the play titled ‘Manhattan Casino,’ in which she essayed the lead role as Althea Dunbar. The play was organized by the LiveArts Peninsula Foundation in St. Petersburg, Florida.
In addition, she also appeared playing the lead role in ‘Webb’s City: The Musical.’ She has been a featured performer and one of the most popular artists who worked in the Broadway Theatre Project, started by Ann Reinking.
Doing immense theatre during the early stages of her career not only prepared her for a screen career, it also helped her securing contacts in the industry.
Along with the above mentioned theatrical credits, she also worked in the Huntington Theatre Company, wherein she worked in the guidance of Jose Rivera, on productions such as ‘Boleros for the Disenchanted.’
In 2007, she made her on-screen debut playing the lead role as Sarah in the short film titled ‘Fighter.’ She followed with another short film in the next year, titled ‘Love? Pain’ and in the same year, she made her television debut with a guest role in a single episode of the series titled ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.’
In 2009, she had the big career breakthrough when she appeared playing one of the main roles as Ria Torres in the Tim Roth starrer crime drama series titled ‘Lie to Me.’ In the series she played an agent throughout the runtime of the series, which received great ratings when it began. The ratings eventually declined and the series was cancelled after 3 seasons and 48 episodes of it were aired.
Despite the series taken off air after 3 seasons, it was a win for Raymund to have worked in a popular series early on in her career.
In 2011, she appeared playing a recurring role as Dana Lodge in the series titled ‘The Good Wife,’ which was yet another critically and commercially acclaimed series.
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In 2012, she earned the biggest role of her career when she appeared playing one of the lead roles as a former paramedic Gabby Dawson in the action drama series titled ‘Chicago Fire.’ She appeared on the series regularly for the first six seasons and during the seventh season, her role was limited to a guest appearance. The series ‘Chicago’ fire was also very successful, both critically and commercially.
In 2012, she made her feature film debut playing a supporting role as Reina in the thriller drama film titled ‘Arbitrage.’ The film was a critical and commercial success.
In the more recent years, she was seen playing a recurring role in the police procedural drama series titled ‘Chicago P.D.’
In 2019, she was seen playing one of the main roles as Jackie in the drama series titled ‘Hightown.’
Family & Personal Life
Monica Raymund dated writer Neil Patrick Stewart and got married to him in June 2011. The couple went through a rocky patch in 2013 and got separated, eventually getting divorced in 2014.
In February 2014, she came out as a bi-sexual. She has also been a keen supporter of the LGBT rights.
In September 2015, she announced on Twitter that she has been dating Tari Segal.
Facts About Monica Raymund
Monica Raymund is a talented actress who speaks fluent Spanish, which she demonstrated in her role as Gabriela Dawson on the TV show "Chicago Fire."
In addition to her acting skills, Monica is also a skilled dancer, having trained in various dance styles including ballet and modern dance.
Monica has a passion for the outdoors and enjoys activities such as hiking, rock climbing, and surfing in her free time.
She is an advocate for mental health awareness and has spoken openly about her own struggles with anxiety and depression, aiming to reduce stigma and encourage others to seek help.
Monica is a dedicated philanthropist, supporting various charitable causes including organizations that focus on empowering women and promoting diversity in the arts.
