Press Release: Fremont Ave.

SOUTH COAST REPERTORY PRESENTS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF FREMONT AVE. BY REGGIE D. WHITE

One of American Theatre’s Dynamic New Leaders
A Co-Production with Arena Stage

COSTA MESA, Calif (Apr. 6, 2026) —South Coast Repertory (Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Director Suzanne Appel) presents Fremont Ave., a new play by Reggie D. White running April 25 through May 23 on the Segerstrom Stage. Directed by Lili-Anne Brown, the world premiere, a co-production, brings to life three generations of Black men bound together by the woman at the center of their world. Fremont Ave. is one of the anchor productions of the 2026 Pacific Playwrights Festival.

Fremont Ave. enjoyed a popular run last fall at Arena Stage, the first leg of this world premiere co-production. The play was featured as a reading in the 2024 Pacific Playwrights Festival.

“When Fremont Ave. was presented as a reading during our 2024 Pacific Playwrights Festival, the immediate and enthusiastic audience response confirmed what we already knew—Reggie has written a beautifully moving play of substance and significance. With plenty of humor and heart, this work speaks across generations and encourages all of us to deeply consider—and reconsider—the humanity of our loved ones,” Ivers said. “It’s been thrilling partnering with Arena Stage to give audiences on both coasts the opportunity to experience this extraordinary work, destined to become a classic.”

“Reggie’s play is a vulnerable, hilarious, and deeply generous new work, and I’m so excited for South Coast Repertory audiences to experience the joy and complexity of this story and this incredible playwright,” Arena Stage Artistic Director Hana S. Sharif said.

The Play

White said the semi-biographical story was inspired by two relatives—the character Robert is based on his uncle and Audrey is based on his real grandmother, also named Audrey. He said he was pushed to write the play by two friends and fellow artists—Academy and Tony Award-nominated actor/director/playwright Colman Domingo (“Fear the Walking Dead,” Rustin, Sing Sing, Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole, Summer: The Donna Summer Musical) and playwright Lauren Gunderson (Emile and Silent Sky, both at SCR).

“It’s not an autobiography, but it’s definitely a homage,” White said. “I think the journey of the last five years with this play has been about liberating myself from needing to write a documentary. Thinking less about it being accurate and more about it looking at the core of what is true for these humans that are an echo of my family. I get to allow these people to be as wild and impulsive as compels me, and to worry less that my grandmother wouldn’t say that, or that my grandfather wouldn’t do that, or my uncle would definitely never wear that. It’s made the process more fun.

“For me, there’s something very beautiful about telling the stories of people who went about living their lives quietly and nobly with integrity and honesty. Who made mistakes and had big wins or small wins—but didn’t shake the world. Their lives are still worthy of memorialization, I think. I wanted to make something that was a love letter to my family, to my grandparents, to the men in my life.”

In 1968, George buys a suburban Southern California home—a stop on his way to something bigger—and hires Audrey as a housekeeper. In 1991, Robert is still living there, itching to start his own life. Thirty years later, Joseph returns home, still struggling with a secret that holds him back. With humor and heart, this multigenerational drama revolves around three Black men, their journeys to choose love and the woman who holds them all together.

“This Southern California family epic highlights universal truths through the deeply specific elements of a Black family’s journey across three generations,” Appel said. “All the communities South Coast Repertory serves will find something—or someone—to love in Reggie D. White’s exquisite play. This new work makes me think about how our families shape both the melodies we all fold into as well as the individual chords that make each of us unique in the world.”

By turns funny and deeply moving, White's play explores the ties of family—what they demand, what they endure, and what they make possible. In 2024, Fremont Ave. was awarded the prestigious Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and it was critically praised during its fall run at Arena Stage.

Trey Graham wrote in the Washington Post that Fremont Ave. is “a sprawling, boisterous, sharp-eyed, heartfelt take on family and friendships” that is “funny as all get-out.”

Maryland Theatre Guide described Fremont Ave. as “an evocative and moving exploration of family, legacy, and unrealized longing.” And they added, “The natural rhythm of White’s writing—its pauses, silences, and cadences—captures the texture of family life: sometimes melodic, sometimes discordant, always deeply human.”

“Quick-witted, smart, fun, and oh so real, Fremont Ave. has the makings of the next great thing,” wrote DMV Theatre Review.

The Playwright

Currently the Senior Director for Artistic Impact and Strategy at Arena Stage, the New York-based White (IG: @r2thaedgy) was recently named the Artistic Director at Wooly Mammoth Theatre in Washington, D.C.. He will take the reins of that position this spring. White is an award-winning, multi-hyphenate artist, educator and arts advocate. White’s works include Lessons in Survival: 1971, which he co-conceived with Tyler Thomas, Peter Mark Kendal and Marin Ireland based on the iconic television conversation on the British television show, “Soul!,” between poet Nikki Giovanni and famed author James Baldwin that catapulted Giovanni’s career. That play was named a New York Times Critic’s Pick Off-Broadway at Vineyard Theatre. His In Case You Haven’t Heard premiered at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor, New York in 2021.

He made his Broadway acting debut in Matthew Lopez’s Tony Award-winning The Inheritance and has appeared at 59E59, La Jolla Playhouse, New York Theatre Workshop and American Repertory Theatre. His directing credits include Atlantic Theater Company, The Public Theater, the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Bay Street Theater and PlayGround-SF among others.

White’s awards include the Colman Domingo Award, the TCG Fox Fellowship, the TBA Titan Award the RHE Artistic Fellowship and an NAACP Theatre Award nomination. He is an alum of Cal State Hayward and the Atlantic Acting School. In addition to his work as a theatre-maker, White is also a passionate theatre educator with more than a decade of experience developing cutting-edge curricula for theatres, schools and arts centers across the country and is one of the most impactful thought leaders in American theatre.

The Director

A native of Chicago’s South Side, Brown (@batmanbr0wn) is a director, actor and educator who has directed, acted and produced award-winning plays all over the country. Her numerous directing credits include The Nacirema Society…, School Girls, or The African Mean Girls Play and the world premieres of Ike Holter’s I Hate It Here and Lottery Day (Goodman Theatre); Two Trains Running (The Acting Company, National Tour); The Hot Wing King (Writer’s Theatre); Dreamgirls (McCarter Theatre and Goodspeed Musicals), FELA! (Olney Theatre Center), Joe Turner's Come and Gone (Huntington Theatre), Ain’t No Mo’ (Woolly Mammoth and Baltimore CenterStage), Waitress, Rent and The Color Purple (The Muny), Once on This Island (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Acoustic Rooster...(Kennedy Center and National Tour), Put Your House in Order (La Jolla Playhouse), Cullud Wattah (Victory Gardens). 

A graduate of Northwestern University, Brown has received two Helen Hayes Awards, five Jeff Awards for outstanding direction in Chicago theatre, two BTA Awards and one African American Arts Alliance Award for directing excellence. She was the inaugural recipient of the Walder Foundation’s Platform Award in 2024, a 2021 recipient of the 3Arts Award for Theatre and a finalist for the 2023 Zelda Fichandler Award, which recognizes extraordinary directors and choreographers in regional theatre.

The Cast

Fremont Ave. features Doug Brown (Older George), Bradley Gibson (George/Robert/Joseph), Jerrika Hinton (Audrey), Stanley Andrew Jackson (Walter), Kevin Mambo (Older Robert), Wildlin Pierrevil (Frank), Jeffrey Rashad (Tony) and Galen J. Williams (Damon). Raven Lorraine (Audrey), ShaYne Powell (Frank/Tony/Walter/Damon) and Michael A. Shepperd (Older George/Older Robert) are the understudies.

Brown, Gibson, Hinton, Jackson, Mambo, Pierrevil, Rashad, Williams and Lorraine all appeared in the Arena Stage production.

Brown makes his SCR debut, adding to a credit list that includes Nine Night, Two Trains Running, Trip to Bountiful, Cuckoo’s Nest, A Lesson Before Dying, Crumbs from the Table of Joy, Pantomime, An Asian Jockey in Our Midst, and The Petrified Forest at Round House Theatre; Something Moving, Fences, Jitney and Member of the Wedding at Ford’s Theatre; Our Lady of 121 Street, Fuddy Meers, Last Orbit of Billy Mars, Homebody/Kabul, Day Room and Measure for Pleasure at Woolly Mammoth Theatre; Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek, The Gin Game, The Island and Mooi Street Moves at MetroStage; Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Hambone, The Colored Museum, Split Second, and Spunk at Studio Theatre; Much Ado About Nothing at The Folger Theatre; Otabenga at Signature Theatre; Jitney and The Piano Lesson at Actors Theatre of Louisville; Radio Golf and Gem of the Ocean at Milwaukee Rep and Two Trains Running, Jitney, and Trip to Bountiful at The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park.

Gibson (@bradgibson13) is known on screen for starring in the Netflix drama “Partner Track” and the hit series “Power Book II: Ghost.” Bradley has starred as Simba on Broadway in Disney’s The Lion King, with additional Broadway credits including A Bronx Tale and Rocky. He also originated the role of Hercules in the premiere production of Disney Theatrical’s Hercules at Paper Mill Playhouse. Off-Broadway, his work includes Love’s Labour’s Lost with The Public Theater and The School for Scandal with Red Bull Theater. As a recording artist and concert soloist, Gibson’s original music recordings include his latest singles “No Ilys” and “Ain’t That Easy,” and he has performed in venues from London’s Royal Albert Hall to the Hollywood Bowl.

Hinton (@hellojerrika) makes her SCR debut after recently appearing in Fremont Ave. at Arena Stage, The Piano Lesson (Netflix), Mr. Crocket (Hulu), and on television in “A Man in Full” (Netflix), “Hunters” (Amazon Prime), “Here and Now” (HBO) and “Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC). A graduate of Southern Methodist University, Hinton is also a certified facilitator of The Resilience Toolkit via Lumos Transforms, as well as Mental Health First Aid for the Entertainment Industry through AMHC.

Jackson (@stanleyaj3) makes his SCR debut. His other credits include Off-Broadway performances in The Refuge Plays at Roundabout Theatre and most recently, the role of Kenneth in Primary Trust at the Alley Theatre. His regional credits include Book of Will, Much Ado About Nothing and Animal Farm at A Noise Within and King Lear at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, among others. Jackson toured overseas with the Pop-up Globe Theatre company in New Zealand and Australia, performing in Romeo & Juliet, Twelfth Night, Henry V, and As You Like It. He is a graduate of Howard University (BFA Acting) and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London (MA Classical Acting).

Mambo (@iammambo) brings Broadway, Off-Broadway, and tour credits to his SCR debut that include The Color Purple, and The Book of Mormon National Tour (Helen Hayes nomination); Fortress of Solitude at Dallas Theater Center and The Public Theater (Lortel nomination); Mlima's Tale at The Public Theater; Ruined at Goodman Theatre and Manhattan Theatre Club; The Convert at Kirk Douglas Theatre, Goodman Theatre, and McCarter Theatre Center; Venus and Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek at Signature Theatre; The Tempest (Helen Hayes nomination) and Radio Golf (Helen Hayes win) at Round House Theatre; and We Are Gathered at Arena Stage. His film credits include Rustin, Nina, Cadillac Records, Rebel in the Rye, Payback, One of Us Tripped, Firing Squad and Henchman of Notre Dame (Best Actor). Television credits include “Guiding Light” (two Emmys, three nominations), “Hit & Run,” “High Maintenance,” “The Good Doctor,” “Blacklist,” “Happyish,” “Soul Food,” “One Life to Live,” “Law & Order,” “Spin City,” “Elementary,” “Any Day Now,” “Family Matters,” “Freshman Dorm,” and “Great Performances.”

When he’s not performing on stage, Pierrevil (@NotWildlin) is a New York-based writer and digital creator with nearly 1 million followers across all social platforms. His theatre credits include Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and Choir Boy (Portland Center Stage), and portraying Ike Turner on the national tour of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. Pierrevil’s television credits include “Normal For Now,” “The Lead,” “Graphite” and “Behind the Scenes.”

Rashad’s (@jeffyjeff_) SCR debut comes after appearing in multiple productions with The Old Globe, including A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Merry Wives of Windsor; The Taming of the Shrew; Twelfth Night; The Nineteenth and Trouble in Mind. His recent credits include The Comedy of Errors/ Two Trains Running (National Tour, The Acting Company); A Christmas Carol in Harlem (Classical Theatre of Harlem); Pass Over (Resident Ensemble Players). He is a graduate of Howard University (BFA) and The Old Globe/University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Acting Program (MFA).

Williams (@theegalenjwilliams) was last seen in the Helen Hayes Award-winning production of Fela! at Olney Theatre Center. The USC MFA graduate’s Broadway credits include Slave Play and Motown the Musical. Regional credits include Once on this Island at Oregon Shakespeare Festival and The Brothers Size at Geffen Playhouse. His film debut came last year in the box office hit One of Them Days starring Keke Palmer and SZA, and his television credits include “POSE” on FX and Tyler Perry’s “The Oval” and “Assisted Living” on BET.

The Creative Team

The design and creative team includes Tim Mackabee, scenic design; Jos N. Banks, costume design; Kathy A. Perkins, lighting design; André Pluess, sound design and composition; LaShawn Melton, hair and wig design and Gregory Geffrard, assistant director and intimacy consultant. Maisie Chan is the production manager and Jamie Berry is the stage manager. Casting is by Murnane Casting and Raiyon Hunter, CSA.

Fremont Ave. received generous support from Season Producers Apriem Advisors and Honorary Producers Talya Nevo-Hacohen and Bill Schenker. The Corporate Associate Producer is Canterbury Consulting.

Tickets are now on sale and range in price from $36 to $128, with additional discounts available for educators, seniors and theatregoers ages 25 and under. Tickets may be purchased online at www.scr.org or by phone at (714) 708-5555. More information is available at www.scr.org.

Related Information for Fremont Ave.:

Special Events

• Post-Show Discussions:
  • Actor Talks with members of the cast: Wednesday, May 6, Thursday, May 14 and Friday, May 22.
  • Community Conversation, a presentation and discussion surrounding a theme specific to Fremont Ave., Sunday, May 17.

• Inside the Season: Saturday, May 9 from 10:30 a.m.-noon.
  Led by members of SCR’s literary staff, this lively 90-minute session includes in-depth interviews with cast members and artists from the production staff, revealing secrets and offering insights into each play. Tickets are $14 and may be purchased in advance or at the door.

• ASL Interpreted Performance: Saturday, May 23 at 2 p.m.

Location: South Coast Repertory is located at 655 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa, at the Bristol Street/Avenue of the Arts exit off the San Diego (405) Freeway in the David Emmes/Martin Benson Theatre Center, part of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Parking is available on Park Center Drive, off Anton Boulevard.

2025-26 Upcoming Productions: Eat Me, April 12-May 3, 2026; Fremont Ave., April 25-May 23, 2026; Hershey Felder, The Piano & Me, June 9-21, 2026. The annual showcase of new works, the Pacific Playwrights Festival, runs May 1-3, 2026.