How Abigail Whitney juggles school, a high-profile modelling gig and directing her first play

Abigail Whitney is breaking out on a number of fronts right now. She's a theatre major at the University of Toronto, the face of a prominent cosmetics ad campaign for Sephora and she's making her directorial debut on stage with a new play called Les Frères (The Brothers), which explores her Haitian heritage. The play follows three Haitian-American brothers who return home to be with their father who is terminally ill.

The show tackles themes like sibling tensions, family secrets, gentrification and the Haitian immigrant experience.  Whitney stopped by the q studio to talk about what it's like to balance the responsibility of directing a show like this with everything else she's got on the go.

Les Frères runs from November 29 to December 1 at the George Ignatieff Theatre.

— Produced by Tyrone Callender

Miss an episode of CBC q? Download our podcast here.