Galileo’s Daughter (Bath)

Now into his eighth decade, Sir Peter Hall shows no signs of letting up as
evidenced by this, his second mini-season at Bath. First off the marks is
Galileo’s Daughter, an adaptation by Timberlake Wertenbaker of Dava Sobel’s
best-selling history book of the same name, published five years ago.

The production sees the return of some members of last season’s company
including the director’s daughter, Rebecca Hall, who stars here as Galileo’s
daughter. Also taking part is the estimable Julian Glover as Galileo
himself.

Subtitled ‘A drama of science, faith and love’, the book/play weaves
together Galileo’s iconoclastic ideas about the true ordering of the
universe, the reaction of the Pope and Catholic establishment and Galileo’s
relationship with Maria Celeste, who despite a life closeted in a convent,
provided her father with the love and support he needed while engaged in his
great work.

If all this sounds, well, heavy, it isn’t. The writing is leavened with wit
and the complexities of interplanetary relations are deftly dealt with in an
early scene which includes a squash, a melon, a lemon and eggs (don’t try
this at home).

However, while Democracy, for example, currently running in the West End
deals with complex issues with wit without stooping, Galileo’s Daughter
conveys little sense of the sheer immensity of just what was at stake here.

In the first half the gathering plague epidemic serves as a metaphor for the
disaster impending. But it hardly imposes on our consciousness. And when
Father Antony returns to the convent from Florence in ominous garb complete
with beak-like mask ‘protection against the plague’ the audience laughs.

Things darken in the second half as Galileo is summoned to Rome and is
forced to recant his heretical re-ordering of the universe. This prompts a
breach with his Maria over his intellectual betrayal before a final
reconciliation.

The play is very attractively staged – the tableau in Rome especially so
and there are some strong performances notably from Julian Glover as
Galileo, William Chubb as Father Antony and Anna Carteret as the Abbess.
With the production set for a life outside Bath you may not even have to
travel to see this entertaining night out. What goes around, as they say,
comes around.

– Pete Wood