Bradley Gibson and Galen J. Williams star in 'Fremont Ave.' at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. The debut award-winning play runs until November 23. Photo by Marc J. Franklin

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The play introduces three generations of the same upper middle-class Black family, spanning the 1960s, 1990s and 2020s. Photo by Marc J. Franklin

Perhaps Tolstoy’s famous line should have been that every happy family is complex in its own way.

A joyfully complex family is front and center in playwright Reggie D. White’s play Fremont Ave., which runs at Arena Stage through November 23. The brand-new play introduces three generations of a decidedly loving, upper middle-class Black family who struggle to understand what they owe to each other and to themselves.

Brought to D.C. by acclaimed director Lili-Anne Brown, Fremont Ave. celebrated its world premiere here last month. It’s already the winner of a prestigious 2024 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award.

The experienced cast, hailing from screen and stage, are top-notch. A feast for eyes and ears, the production encourages audiences to respond during each performance.

Plot launches with a love story

In 1968, when newly minted doctor George Plique meets Audrey, he’s smitten. He’s hired her to clean his modest, mid-century home on Fremont Avenue in suburban Los Angeles (stone wall, wood cabinets and sleek furniture courtesy of set designer Tim Mackabee).

Bradley Gibson, who deftly plays all three generations of Plique men in their youth, demonstrates George’s awkward balance between his life as a professional Black man of education and his private dreams of playing and writing music.

A confident Jerrika Hinton brings straight-talking Audrey’s complexity to life. Folding laundry, she relishes George’s wonderful singing and piano playing and nudges him to reach his potential at work.

In time, George romances Audrey with his emotional maturity. Once married, he turns down a less stable, creative opportunity without consulting her, which affects both her and her son, Rob.

Clothes (and hair), by costume designer Jos N. Banks, work hard in this production. George’s two-tone sweaters and polished shoes reflect his love of style and status, while Audrey’s neat, utilitarian slacks and tops underscore that she doesn’t have the luxury of caring about looks — until later, in the 1990s, when she emerges in a church ensemble with a soaring sculpture of a hat that speaks to her new goals and self-image.

At the center of the feverish montage of hip-hop, dancing, card-playing and wisecracking that is Act Two is Rob (Gibson). His failure to pass the bar exam and anxiety about family expectations leave him directionless in his 20s as three of his friends launch legal careers.

Through these times, troubled by the Rodney King beating, Clinton’s infamous “three strikes” legislation, the Hill-Thomas hearings and the O.J. Simpson trial, the friends push back with sharp wit and relax in the security of their friendship.

Music from the boombox (by André Pluess) amplifies the fun in this production. When certain songs hit, three card players jump up and execute coordinated dance moves. Act Two was complicated and a little hard to follow, but the audience responded enthusiastically to the music and choreography.

In Act Three, in the 2020s, the unthinkable happens: The family loses its matriarch. Grandson Joseph (again, Gibson), his father Rob (Kevin Mambo) and grandfather George (Doug Brown) gather to bury grandmother Audrey, joined by Joseph’s boyfriend, Damon (Galen J. Williams).

Dialogue echoes across acts

One way the play anchors the audience in this sprawling saga is by having Joseph repeat to Damon pivotal dialogue between Audrey and George. Although the words are the same, Audrey’s survival tactics may impede Joseph, who felt Audrey’s disapproval of his homosexuality even as she doted on him.

Without Audrey, the men of the family learn to say what they have not been able to in the past, admitting past grievances and expressing love and vulnerability.

Of course, having Bradley Gibson play the young version of all three generations emphasizes the themes of repetition and change. Gibson’s rendering of each generation is so precise and individualized that I forgot it was the same actor, thanks to strong assists from hair (LaShawn Melton) and costume.

In the final scene, Damon joins Joseph at the piano, resting his head on Joseph’s shoulder as Audrey once did with George.

They are better off for having each other, and we are better for seeing this funny, rich play.

At two hours and 45 minutes with one intermission, this play includes language not suitable for children. Lyft and taxis may be reserved at Visitor Services upon arrival. There is also an on-site parking garage. For tickets, see tickets.arenastage.org/events.