Written by Hannah Moscovitch

Directed by Lee Bolton

In photos: Chris Whidden, Peyton Le Barr

Little One is an early (2011) sample of Hannah Moscovitch’s searing insights into the “everyday” life of Canadians, insights now making headlines in her most recent hits, “Secret Life of a Mother” and “Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes.” Adopted siblings Aaron and Claire, now adults, tell the story of their childhood on a “liberal middle-class Ave” in Ottawa. Who is telling the truth? Who is responsible for the death of Aaron’s cat, “Little One” and what went on in the house next door that “seemed haunted before anything even happened?” Moscovitch draws us into this complex, timely, dark and sometimes difficult story with intelligence, delicacy and surprising humour.

Watch the show trailer

"In Little One both Peyton Le Barr and Chris Whidden give stunningly nuanced performances, marked by the deep honesty of seasoned performers. Audiences are captivated from the opening scene with the dynamic pacing of Lee Bolton's direction, moving us through the twists and turns of playwright Hannah Moskovitch's dark and unsettling world."
-Victoria Mohr-Blakeney, Associate Director & Performance Curator, Public Energy Performing Arts

Lee Bolton - Director

Lee Bolton has spent more than three decades in the theatre as a director, playwright, teacher, producer and presenter. She is a graduate of York University (BA) and the University of Leeds (MA) as well as of both the Lincoln Center Directors’ Lab and Directors Lab North. Her work has taken her from sea (Artistic Director, Yukon Educational Theatre) to sea (Artistic Director, Silk Purse Theatre Vancouver) to sea (Executive Director, Imperial Theatre Saint John) and recently returned her to her home town of Peterborough, Ontario (Theatre Coordinator, Nozhem First Peoples Performance Space).

Favourite directing credits include “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” for the Whitehorse Guild Theatre; “The Idle Hands Variety Show” “Just Friends” and “Jennie’s Story” for Vancouver’s Silk Purse Productions; “Vinegar Tom” for the William Davis Centre; “Jocasta” and “Pedalo” for Theatre Leeds; “Place Setting” and “A Spot of Tea” for the Fundy Fringe Festival and “Rapunzel: A Panto” for the Peterborough Theatre Guild. Lee also wrote the libretto for “Larger than Life: The Musical” which has been professionally produced in Vancouver and Toronto.

Creative Team

Chris Whidden - Actor

Chris is a Peterborough based theatre writer and performer with a focus on mask, clown and physical storytelling. As a creator his work is aimed at producing art for social impact and change.
Chris co-runs Grassboots Theatre Company, an artist-run company that explores the human spirit through socially relevant stories. In 2019 along with a long list of community-engaged programming the company had its debut production written by Chris titled Repatriation to the Moon. The play is on track for a remount in 2021.
Working as a professional actor for over a decade, Chris has spent most of his career in Ontario. He was an original collaborator for the co-production There is No Word for Wilderness between 4Elements and Animacy Theatre Collective in Maitoulin Island and has been a returning cast member for multiple remounts. Chris has also worked in partnership with Toronto Green Peace and Toronto 350 to create a collaborative mask performance piece based around climate justice and the Degrowth movement through Animacy Theatre Collective. Chris also carries a long record of classical productions in Toronto through his longstanding work with Alehouse Theatre, Hart House Theatre, and Seven Sibling Theatre.
As a writer Chris has had two plays produced Welcome to Hell! and Roaring Robert, the latter of which was produced by Shadowpath Theatre including a sold out run at the Toronto Fringe.
In 2019, in addition to his work in theatre Chris works in video editing creating content for his YouTube channel which now boasts over 75,000 subscribers.
Chris is a graduate of the Performance Acting program from Ryerson University where he received his BFA and the Edna Khubyar Award for excellence in performance.

Peyton Le Barr - Actor

Peyton is a theatre artist currently based in Peterborough, Ontario. She has been a professional actor for over a decade and has performed in Canada, the UK, and Russia. Today, Peyton co-runs Grassboots Theatre Company, an artist run company that celebrates the human spirit through socially relevant stories. Prior to, Peyton co-ran Spiel Players, a Toronto based theatre collective that developed new translations and adaptations of European plays. With a special interest in physical theatre, Peyton continues to perform, direct, and produce independent productions, many of which are connected to her activism and her passion for using art for social change.
As an actor, Peyton has a long track record of performance in the UK including an adapted production of Hamlet at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre where she played the title role. Peyton has also performed in numerous independent and professional projects within Ontario. In 2017 Peyton performed alongside Canada’s acting legend Walter Borden in an adapted performance of King Lear on the steps of Toronto’s Homeless Memorial during their monthly vigilance to bring a spotlight to the shelter crisis during the extreme cold weather warnings.
In 2017 Peyton was a guest artist at Humber College where she taught site specific performance and has been a guest director at Newfoundland’s Stephenville Theatre Festival. As a facilitator, Peyton has developed a number of successful arts programs and continues to develop new ways to integrate the arts into communities. She is currently the Artist-In-Resident at the Kawartha Sexual Assault Centre where she facilitates trauma-informed workshops in storytelling.
In 2016, Peyton was identified as an emerging leading female artist through an Ontario Trillium Foundation grant and received an apprenticeship in artistic direction with Shadowpath Theatre Productions. In 2019 Peyton was awarded a Metcalf Internship with Public Energy Performing Arts where she was the production lead for multiple touring companies and artist residencies.
Peyton holds an MFA (with merit) from East 15 Acting School at the University of Essex and a BFA in Acting from the University of Windsor.