DAUNTLESS: Grace O’Malley, Pirate Queen

About the show:

Debs Newbold gleefully delivers the inspirational story of Grace O’Malley, the legendary Irish clan chief and queen of the sea.

Stowing away aboard her father’s ship aged 8, Grace became a 16th century force of nature: A multilingual weapons expert and leader of 2000 men, rebel, politician, prodigious lover, avenging hero and notorious pirate.

Best of all, she was real.

From the west of Ireland to the court of Elizabeth I, from wild youth to even wilder old age, Dauntless is an epic celebration of uproarious storytelling, high drama and one fascinating 16th century feminist. No knights in shining armour need apply.

Content Guidance: this show is crafted primarily for adults, and children 14+. Contains descriptions of birth, postnatal bleeding, violence and death.

Bio:

Debs Newbold is an award-winning performer who creates inventive, playful shows that go deep under the skin.

One of the world’s most highly acclaimed storytellers, Debs is a passionate and skilled performer with a gift for bringing the epic out of the everyday. She has created work for venues including the Royal Opera House, the BBC, the RSC and the United Nations and Shakespeare’s Globe and regularly takes her work to theatres and festival stages all over the world.

Debs’ work spans myth, history and new writing. Her genre-defying collaborations with world mask and clown expert John Wright helped re-define contemporary UK storytelling and her re-tellings of Shakespeare’s tragedies have toured internationally to critical acclaim.

Debs holds a Summerhall Edinburgh Fringe Award and was a Finalist in both the UK OFFIE and Standing Ovation Awards. In 2025 she guested on the international hit The Blindboy Podcast “Debs is magnificent” (Blindboy).