It is by far the best English version yet, capturing Brecht's spiky humor and avoiding the flat-footed, prosaic literalism of previous attempts. Hare is at his best in the early teaching scenes. There's real exhilaration in Galileo's explanations of Copernicus, an understanding of how joyful learning can be. The wit and precision of these moments is dazzling, a fact that never emerged in the better known Laughton and Sauerlander-Manheim translations. Michael Winters' performance as Galileo is a constantly surprising delight.
Winters succeeds on all fronts.
The rest of the cast is excellent. Amy Mordecai, as Galileo's daughter Virginia, gives the only problematic performance. Brecht conceives Virginia as a voice of complacency and reaction, the nagging specter of the Church in Galileo's home. Mordecai struggles with a thankless role, but can't avoid sounding strident. The only other real misstep is the carnival scene.