 | The topic of this article may not meet Misplaced Pages's notability guideline for biographies. Please help to demonstrate the notability of the topic by citing reliable secondary sources that are independent of the topic and provide significant coverage of it beyond a mere trivial mention. If notability cannot be shown, the article is likely to be merged, redirected, or deleted. Find sources: "Hayley Barr" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Hayley Barr | |
|---|---|
 Hayley Barr in New York, 2011 | |
| Born | (1971-04-27) April 27, 1971 (age 53) Salzburg, Austria |
| Other names | Hayley Sparks |
| Occupation(s) | Actress and Photographer |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | Jon Simmons |
Hayley Barr (born April 27, 1971) is an Austrian-Australian actress and photographer. She is best known for playing the role of Courtney Baxter Dixon on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns from 1990 to 1993. She received three Soap Opera Digest Award nominations for her role on As the World Turns.
Early life
Barr was born in Salzburg, Austria to Australian parents who were stationed at a nearby military base. Her father was a doctor and her mother was a teacher. She is the second of four children. As of 1992, she maintained dual citizenship.
When she was four years old, Barr's family settled in Portland, Oregon. She began studying ballet at the age of five. When she was eleven, she was cast as Pepper in a Portland Civic Center production of Annie. She also appeared in Ballet West's production of The Nutcracker and worked as a model.
Barr attended Sunset High School, where she worked in the theater department and won awards for competitive speaking. The summer before her senior year, she was chosen to attend Northwestern University's five week National High School Institute, where she studied with Peter Hedges. She attended New York University and studied at the Circle in the Square Theatre's Professional Workshop.
Career
Barr appeared in New York stage productions of Jesus Christ Superstar, Addict, Peter Pan, and West Side Story. After her first semester at NYU, she found that she couldn't afford to continue paying her tuition. She moved to Los Angeles to look for acting work, but she ended up landing a role in New York instead. After unsuccessfully auditioning for the role of Lily Walsh on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns (which went to Heather Rattray), she won the role of Courtney Baxter. She was nominated for Soap Opera Digest Awards in 1991, 1992, and 1993. Barr stayed with the show from 1990 to 1993.
She appeared as herself in the 1996 film Looking for Richard.
In 1999 and 2002, Barr temporarily played the role of Harley Cooper on Guiding Light, filling in for Beth Ehlers.
She played Sarah Fisher in the 2005 film Sum of Existence.
After interning for Annie Leibovitz, she now works as a professional photographer. Her clients have included Marie Claire, The New York Times, Sunday Life, Camilla, Cotton On, and Westfield.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Looking For Richard | Herself | |
| 2005 | Sum of Existence | Sarah Fisher |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-1993 | As the World Turns | Courtney Baxter Dixon | Contract role |
| 1998 | Soul Man | Alex Watson | Episode: "Play Ball" |
| 1999-2002 | Guiding Light | Harley Cooper | Temporary replacement |
References
- ^ Henderson, Kathy (September 15, 1992). "Barr None". Soap Opera Digest. 17 (19): 114–118.
- ^ Rout, Nancy E.; Buckley, Ellen (1992). The Soap Opera Book: Who's Who in Daytime Drama. Todd Publications. pp. 13–14. ISBN 978-0-915344-23-9.
- ^ Sammons, Mary Beth (August 7, 1990). "Soaps' Hottest Newcomers". Soap Opera Digest. 15 (17): 118–119.
- "The Soap Opera Awards Nominations". Soap Opera Digest. 17 (20): 66–79. September 29, 1992.
- Willis, John (2000). Screen World 1997 Film Annual: Volume 48 Expanded Format. Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. p. 122. ISBN 978-1557833204.
- ^ Eades, Chris (March 26, 2023). "Catch up With As the World Turns Alum Hayley Barr Sparks". Soaps in Depth. Archived from the original on May 1, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
- "The AV Club: Sum of Existence". The AV Club. Archived from the original on May 1, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
