Play explores our attachment to technology

Thompson appears in a play that emphasizes the dilemma, “The Agony & The Ecstasy of Steve Jobs,” presented by the M.T. Pockets Theatre in Morgantown at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and June 4-6.

The play consists of nine monologues exploring the genius and weaknesses of Apple founder Jobs, the man who made smartphones and iPods and iPads — as well as computers — part of everyday life.

David Beach, director of the play, which was written by playwright Mike Daisey, noted the monologues also delve into the working conditions of the massive factory in Shenzhen, China, where many of the devices are made.

“The manufacturing process over there is relatively horrid,” Beach said. “People are working 12 to 16-hour shifts at a time. One of the plants set up suicide nets because workers were jumping off the building because of stress.”

The play can be presented as a one-man show, but Beach chose to have nine different actors deliver each monologue.

“What we have been working at is having different voices — male, female, older, younger, hipsters,” he added. “It’s a message for all of us from all of us, so I wanted to have as diverse a cast as I could.”

A professional actor and musician who will be attending the University of the Arts in Philadelphia this fall, Thompson has appeared in M.T. Pockets Theatre plays before and appreciates “The Agony & The Ecstasy of Steve Jobs.”

“It’s revolutionary,” Thompson said. “It’s about community and a gathering of minds. It’s a living piece, a living document. The writer wanted people to be able to add to it as they found new stories and new emotions.”

The theme resonates with Thompson, who noted that his fiance uses Apple devices while he prefers Androids.

“It’s more about the people using the devices than the devices themselves,” he added. “It’s a very important piece that people will get a lot out of in different ways.”

The play was first presented in New York City in the fall of 2011, right around the same time that Jobs died of pancreatic cancer.

“Apple has really dominated the market, and between him and Steve Wozniak, his early partner, they revolutionized how we think of the computer, period, both as far as operating systems go and the hardware that runs them,” Beach said. “Jobs was the one who made those paradigm shifts as far as technology goes.”

Wozniak, who has not been part of Apple for nearly 30 years, is quoted on the M.T. Pockets Theatre website (www.mtpocketstheatre.com) as saying, “I will never be the same after seeing that show.”

Beach found the play last year and thought it would be a good one for M.T. Pockets to present.

“It’s not an invective against Steve Jobs,” Beach said. “He was brilliant, and he saw what we needed as a culture as far as technology. It’s a very interesting play about moral, ethics and manufacturing.”

“The Agony & The Ecstasy of Steve Jobs” will be presented at the M.T. Pockets Theatre at 1390 1/2 University Ave. in Morgantown. For more information, check out www.mtpocketstheatre.com