Hell hath no fury like a geek disappointed. Example No. 3,854: “The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs,” the new solo piece by Mike Daisey.
With shows such as “The Last Cargo Cult” (about money) and “If You See Something Say Something” (about Homeland Security), the popular monologuist has acquired the reputation of a big-mouthed firebrand.
But “The Agony and the Ecstasy,” which looks at the real price exacted by Apple gizmos, is far from a full-throated attack. A nuanced POV is good, but Daisey doesn’t fully explore the repercussions of Apple’s unique hold on our imagination and our daily lives. By the end of the overlong work, directed by Jean-Michele Gregory, we’re left with some piercing observations, as well as a big “And … ?”
Though it started previews six days after Jobs’ death, the show has been in the works for much of Daisey’s life: His first computer was an Apple IIc, and he describes himself as “an Apple aficionado.”
But that love affair was also tainted with resentment, especially of the way Apple creates new desires, only to crush them by discontinuing well-liked, functional products. (Here’s to you, iPod Mini.)
But these marketing whimsies pale compared to their human toll.
Daisey traveled to Shenzhen, China, and talked to employees of Foxconn, the company that manufactures iPads and iPhones. Suddenly, Apple’s reputation for coolness was shaken: “It’s always a problem for any religion, the moment when you begin to think.”
In “The Agony and the Ecstasy,” Daisey alternates between his personal relationship with Apple, Jobs’ path at the company and grim anecdotes about Shenzhen — a monster city that “looks like ‘Blade Runner’ threw up on itself.” There, Foxconn hires children. Workweeks last 60 or 70 hours. Employees in their 20s are crippled by arthritis.
Unquestionably, Daisey is an expert storyteller. Even though he sits behind a table the entire time, he seems to fill the entire stage. He can sound like a gospel preacher one minute, imitate the screech of a dot-matrix printer the next.
But Daisey’s analysis is too narrow. News of workers exploitation barely slowed down Nike, and Foxconn also makes electronics for the likes of Dell, Intel and Motorola. Yet these companies don’t have Apple’s peculiar mystique — which Daisey doesn’t explore enough.
“You will see the blood seep between the keys,” he warns. But it’ll take more than some Chinese gore to stop people from lining up at the Genius Bar.