Photo Flash: Four Disabled Actors Featured as Disabled Characters in THE BOYS NEXT DOOR at The Blue Door
By: Shari Barrett Sep. 10, 2018
CRE Outreach is pleased to present THE BOYS NEXT DOOR by Tom Griffin, a comedy-drama centering on a caring social worker who supervises four disabled men living together in an apartment while learning to face their daily challenges together. Performances take place from Friday, October 12 through Saturday, November 10, 2018 on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm, Sundays at 3:00pm at The Blue Door, 9617 Venice Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232
Mingled with scenes from the daily lives of these four, 
where "little things" sometimes become momentous (and often very funny), are moments of great poignancy when, with touching effectiveness, we are reminded that the handicapped, like the rest of us, want only to love and laugh and find some meaning and purpose in the brief time that they are allotted on this earth. As such, THE BOYS NEXT DOOR explores friendship, love and loss in ways universal to all of us.
Directed by Jeremy Aldridge, award-winning director 
from Sacred Fools Theatre, and produced by Bryan C. Caldwell, Co-Founder and Executive Director of CRE Outreach as an Equity Approved Showcase with rights secured through Dramatists Play Service, THE BOYS NEXT DOOR gives CRE Outreach the opportunity to produce a published work and cast it from within three of its Theatre Arts as Therapy programs, including Veterans Empowerment Theatre members Mason Vokes as Jack, with Judy Welsh in ensemble roles; Theatre by the Blind members Kenny Lee as Lucien P. Smith, 
Lee Pugsley as Arnold Wiggens, CoCo Head as Barry Klemper, Sylvia Taylor as Sheila, with Leela Kazerouni in ensemble roles; and Rex & Friends musician August McAdoo as Norman Bulansky. Douglas Jewell, a veteran character actor and proud member of Actors' Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA, has joined the cast as Mr. Klemper.
We all fight with filters and obstacles in our lives, but the actors and characters in this production face challenges steeper than most. It is the experience and living truth of the actors that will fill these characters' stories with physical and emotional authenticity.
Learn more about the cast and director by watching THE BOYS NEXT DOOR trailer on YouTube: https://youtu.be/7Lc_VOue8SY
THE BOYS NEXT DOOR performances run two hours with a 15-minute intermission from Friday, October 12 through Saturday, November 10, 2018 on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm, Sundays at 3:00pm at The Blue Door, 9617 Venice Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232. Single tickets are priced at $15. Tickets and information available at https://creoutreach.org or via phone at (310) 425-8215. Any available tickets will be sold at the box office starting a half hour prior to show time.
The cast of CRE Outreach's production of THE BOYS NEXT DOOR, a play centering on the lives of four disabled men and their social worker, Jack, features actors with disabilities from all of CRE's Theatre Arts as Therapy programs. (L to R) Rex & Friends musician August McAdoo as Norman Bulansky, Theatre by the Blind member Lee Pugsley as Arnold Wiggens, Veterans Empowerment Theatre member Mason Vokes as their social worker Jack, and Theatre by the Blind members CoCo Head as Barry Klemper and Kenny Lee as Lucien P. Smith.
Photo credit: Jason Taylor
About CRE Outreach
CRE Outreach is a non-profit performing arts organization dedicated to empowering underserved youth, people with disabilities, and military veterans in greater Los Angeles. CRE stands for Create, Reflect, Empower - words that encompass the process, focus, and targeted outcomes of our programs. Since 2007, CRE Outreach has utilized theatre, the performing arts, and educational programs as a means to enhance self-esteem, encourage self-expression, and empower individuals to overcome the challenges in their lives. Read more about CRE Outreach online: https://creoutreach.org.
About Veterans Empowerment Theatre
Veterans Empowerment Theatre (VET) features a variety of performing arts workshops and opportunities that give our nation's brave service members a safe environment to voice their own heroic stories, personal tragedies, triumphs, and experiences through theatre. Many veterans upon returning from war often turn to drugs and alcohol as a way of dealing with trauma experienced during active duty - many times resulting in homelessness or incarceration. According to the American Journal of Public Health, "Veterans returning from war zone deployment are at higher risk for mental health problems and drug and alcohol abuse." Read more about VET online: https://creoutreach.org/our-programs/veterans-empowerment-theatre/
About Theatre by the Blind
Theatre by the Blind, the country's only theatre troupe composed entirely of blind actors, helps blind and visually impaired individuals become self-sufficient using theatre-based programs and original performances to help them to successfully navigate through today's society. Theatre by the Blind provides participants with a constructive and creative forum to confront their challenges while informing the public, raising awareness, and changing perceptions about the capabilities of the blind. These remarkable individuals create and perform original theatrical works that empower and inspire program participants and audiences alike. Read more about Theatre by the Blind online: https://creoutreach.org/our-programs/theater-by-the-blind/
About Rex & Friends
Named in honor of Rex Lewis-Clack, who was born blind and then diagnosed with autism as a toddler, Rex & Friends is a program that provides support and training in musical abilities, and performance opportunities for individuals in Southern California who are blind or autistic. Both of these disabilities tend to isolate, and the program is geared to help bridge this isolation. We bring these musicians together and provide ongoing professional support and guidance, encouraging participants develop their musical repertoire in an environment that is sure to grow friendships, self-esteem, and skill while rehearsing and ultimately performing in front of live audiences.
About The Blue Door
One of the foremost goals of CRE Outreach has been the creation of their own studio and performance space. Thanks to many generous private donors and a highly successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017, that goal has been achieved with the complete renovation of a two-story building in Culver City, now known as THE BLUE DOOR. With workshop, rehearsal, and 50-seat performance space, the updated facility at 9617 Venice Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 welcomes all to experience how the performing arts can enhance self-esteem, encourage self-expression, and empower individuals to overcome the challenges in their lives.
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