The Boys Next Door January 22, 2011

In Tom Griffin's 'The Boys Next Door,' four mentally handicapped men live under the supervision of a young social worker named Jack. Norman, who works in a doughnut shop and is unable to resist the lure of the sweets, takes a great pride in his huge bundle of keys; Lucien P. Smith has the mind of a five year old, but imagines that he is able to read and comprehend the weighty books he carries about; Arnold, the ringleader of the group, is a hyperactive compulsive chatterer, who suffers from a persecution complex; while Barry, a brilliant schizophrenic devastated by the unfeeling rejection of his father, fantasizes that he a golf pro. Experience the moments of great poignancy when we are reminded that the handicapped, like the rest of us, want only to love and laugh and find some meaning and purpose in their lives.