In San Jose, arguably the technology capital of the United States, they understand what Crt+Alt+Del does. It's a way to escape a crashing program. The techie black comedy, Crtl+Alt+Del, escapes its world premiere run at San Jose Repertory Theatre Nov. 18. Ethan McSweeny, the director of Broadway's recent revival of Gore Vidal's The Best Man, directs the Anthony Clarvoe play.

In Crtl+Alt+Del, a whiz kid with the next best thing in the industry joins forces with a new technology leader to create what amounts to a billion dollar house of cards. Surrounded by corporations that remember books as "little paper websites" and remind each other of various characters from the Muppets, the two try to survive the shockwaves, real and imagined, that threaten to topple their new product's success.

Native San Franciscan Clarvoe is the author of four Drama-Logue winners Let's Play Two, Ambition Facing West, The Living and Pick Up Ax. Ctrl+Alt+Del was read at California's South Coast Repertory March 26.

McSweeny made his directorial splash with John Logan's hit Never the Sinner. Currently resident director at New Jersey's George Street Playhouse, he helmed regional productions of Wit (Pittsburgh), The Beauty Queen of Leenane (Houston) and The Triumph of Love (Washington, DC).

Patrick Darragh stars as Eddie Fisker, the entrepreneur with the idea, and James Carpenter as Gus Belmont, the man with the money. Also in the cast are Betsy Brandt (Marie), Sam Gregory (CEO Carbury Grendall), Jennifer Kato (financial reporter Toria Bruno) and John Nagle (Tom Xerox, in marketing and sales). Designing Crtl+Alt+Del are Todd Rosenthal (sets), B. Modern (costumes), Frances Aronson (lighting) and Jeff Mockus (sound).

Tickets are $20-$44. San Jose Repertory Theatre is located at 101 Paseo de San Antonio between 2nd and 3rd Avenues. For reservations, call (408) 367-7255. San Jose Repertory Theatre is on the web at http://www.sjrep.com.

— By Christine Ehren