Theatre News Wire

Mike Daisey will deliver a special, one-night only performance of his wildly popular, critically lauded monologue, The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, on Saturday, April 7 at 7pm at The Chicago Theatre, with an introduction and Q&A to follow hosted by Ira Glass. Tickets go on sale on March 1 at 10am CST.

Ira Glass, host and producer of This American Life (TAL), saw the show during its debut run at The Public Theatre last fall, and immediately wanted to adapt it for radio. On January 6, TAL ran "Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory," which included a 40-minute excerpt from The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, tailored and performed specifically for broadcast. Almost instantly, it became one of TAL's most popular shows.

Created and performed by Daisey and directed by Jean-Michele Gregory, this hilarious and harrowing tale finds Daisey turning his razor-sharp wit to America's most mysterious technology icon. A tale of pride, beauty, lust, and industrial design, the show illuminates how the former CEO of Apple and his obsessions shape our lives, while following the trail all the way to China to investigate the factories where millions toil to make iPhones and iPods. His dangerous journey shines a light on our love affair with our devices and the
human cost of creating them.

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak told The New York Times, "I will never be the same after seeing that show." The Washington Post heralded it as "the best original American play this year." The AP called it "mesmerizing."

"Mike's full show is a very different experience from what we put on the radio," said Glass. "For starters, there's an entire story line about Steve Jobs that we didn't touch. Add to that the pleasure of seeing Mike joke and sweat and spin this amazing tale in person-I loved this when I saw it on stage and I'm so excited to bring it to Chicago."

Within hours of its release, "Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory" broke the record for most downloaded episode of This American Life, which is consistently the most popular podcast in the country. After hearing the broadcast, TAL listener Mark Shields was moved to start a petition calling for better working conditions, and soon delivered almost a quarter-million signatures to Apple. A week after the broadcast, Apple released its list of suppliers for the first time ever. In another first, the company also announced that it will start allowing an outside third party to check on working conditions at those factories, and to make its findings public. Twenty days after the broadcast, The New York Times ran a massive, front-page investigative report about Apple's overseas manufacturing. A month and a half after the broadcast, Foxconn, the company that Daisey visited and chronicles in his show, announced a 25% salary increase for many workers. The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs has reached a critical mass, and now Mike Daisey, WBEZ Chicago, and This American Life are proud to bring it live to Chicago.