Red-Handed Otter, a new play by Ethan Lipton, is currently performing at The Cherry Lane Theatre in The Village.   Although the play has a comedic tone, it deals with the darker themes of people caught in dead end jobs with social lives that are less than fulfilling.

The play opens with security guard Paul listening to Gorecki's Symphony #3 at his work station in a security office. He is mourning the loss of Jennifer, his seventeen-year-old cat.  The title of the symphony that he is listening to appropriately enough is "Symphony of Sorrowful Songs."

As Paul mourns, one of his colleagues, Don, attempts to cheer him up with tales of his own childhood pets, which apparently included an otter. The attempt fails. Exasperated, Don and his colleagues buy Paul a new cat,  a gesture that backfires.

Paul doesn't appear to have much of a social life, causing the loss of his cat to be all the more devastating. Matthew Maher as Paul projects a truly sad-sack image, as if he doesn't expect any positive outcomes in life, an attitude which in his case probably has something of a self-fulfilling prophecy.  Paul's social isolation is heightened by the fact that Don is surreptitiously having an affair with Paul's former girlfriend, Angela, who is also a colleague.

Otter deals with the interesting theme of how people can become overly attached to pets. Sometimes the key to understanding a person's soul is through their pet, and an obsessive attachment to an animal sometimes masks a void caused by a lack of real human companionship.

The basic construction of Red-Handed Otter reminds me of several sitcoms, such as Alice or Taxi. Instead if dealing with cab drivers or waitresses, all of Otter's characters are security guards. In their mutual concern for each other, the play also recalls Cheers. And just as the focal point of Cheers could alternate between Cliff, Sam, Norm, and Diane, etc., I could easily see a continuation or sequel of Otter centering on another character in the play.

Virtually all of  Otter takes place in a security center dominated by a number of video monitors. The set, designed by Andrew Boyce, is detailed and impressive. The numerous video monitors accentuate the antiseptic atmosphere, which heightens the underlying sense of social isolation in the comedy.  Although they are to an extent overshadowed by Mr. Maher's role and performance, other members of the talented cast include Bobby Moreno (Don),  Rebecca Henderson (Angela), and Quincy Tyler Bernstine and Gibson Frazier who also play security guards.

It is a cliché that the line dividing farce and tragedy is very thin and Otter does demonstrate that funny and dark themes can co-exist side by side.  The play also speaks to the current state of the depressed economy in which many are are caught in unfulfilling jobs (if they have a job at all).  At a roughly 80 minute running length, Otter deals with its themes succinctly and does not wear out its welcome.

Red Handed Otter, produced by the Playwrigth's Realm, is performing at the The Cherry Lane Theatre through October 6.  For ticket information log on to www.cherrylanetheatre.com.