Vanessa Nicole Marano (born October 31, 1992) is an American actress. She has starred in television movies and had recurring roles in such series as ''

Without a Trace ''Without a Trace'' is an American police procedural drama television series created by Hank Steinberg that aired on CBS from September 26, 2002 to May 19, 2009 with the total of seven seasons and 160 episodes. The series focuses the cases of ...

'', ''

Gilmore Girls ''Gilmore Girls'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino and starring Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore) and Alexis Bledel (Rory Gilmore). The show debuted on October 5, 2000, on The WB and became a flagshi ...

'', ''

Ghost Whisperer ''Ghost Whisperer'' is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010. The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon ( Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has the ability to see and communicate with ...

'', '' Scoundrels'', ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...

'' and ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...

''. From 2011 to 2017, she starred as Bay Kennish on the Freeform television series '' Switched at Birth''.

Career

Marano began acting professionally at the age of seven. According to an interview with her sister, her mother did not want either of her children to have careers in show business, and took the girls to an agent that she believed was most likely to turn kids down, only to find that Vanessa was accepted. Her sister Laura, who was on the scene with her, also impressed the agency. Since then, she has worked for productions at the Stage Door Theater. Marano's first major roles on television have been as Jack Malone's older daughter in ''

'' (she and real life sister Laura play sisters), Valerie's stepdaughter in '' The Comeback'' and as April Nardini in ''

''. She also played Layne Abeley in ''

The Clique A clique is a close social group. Clique or The Clique may also refer to: Math and computing * Clique (graph theory) ** Clique problem in computer science Business and brands * Clique (vodka), a Latvian vodka sold in the United States Entertai ...

'' based on the books by

Lisi Harrison Elyse E. "Lisi" Harrison (née Gottlieb; born on July 29, 1970) is a Canadian novelist. She writes young adult fiction and is well known for her three series ''The Clique'', ''Alphas'' and ''Monster High Monster High is an American multime ...

and Samantha Combs in ''

Dear Lemon Lima ''Dear Lemon Lima'' is a 2009 family comedy feature film written and directed by Suzi Yoonessi. Based on her short film of the same name and developed with the support of Film Independent and its Filmmaker Labs, this film is about a 13-year-old h ...

''. Marano starred in an episode of ''

'' alongside

Jennifer Love Hewitt Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Hewitt began her career as a child actress and singer, appearing in national television commercials before joining the cast of the Disney Channel series ''Kids I ...

. Marano played Eden on ''

'' and Hope on '' Scoundrels''. From 2011 to 2017, she starred as Bay Kennish on the

ABC Family The American cable television, cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and s ...

TV show '' Switched at Birth''. In 2013, she starred in ''Restless Virgins'', which was inspired by a true story. 2019 saw her star alongside her sister Laura in '' Saving Zoë''.

Personal life

Marano was born in Los Angeles, California. Her mother, Ellen, is the owner of the Agoura Children's Theatre. Her younger sister,

Laura Marano Laura Marie Marano (born November 29, 1995) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her role in the Disney Channel series '' Austin & Ally'' as Ally Dawson. Marano was one of the five original classmates in '' Are You Smarter than a ...

, is also an actress. Marano speaks

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, and her father is of Italian descent.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marano, Vanessa 1992 births Living people Actresses from Los Angeles American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses American people of Italian descent 21st-century American actresses