MATRIARCHS - REVIEWS

 

UNA CRAWFORD & BRYAN MURRAY

'Going to a new play is always interesting. There are no preceived ideas and nothing to compare it to.

"Matriarchs" is a play about two very powerful women, Elizabeth 1st of England and Grace O'Malley the Pirate Queen. From the moment the play opened you were drawn into the battle of wits between these two women, Graces son, Tibbott Burke and Robert, the Earl of Essex. It is about love, marriage, power and the challenges posed by female ageing

Ann Chambers dialog ue was powerful and surefooted, discriptive and dramatic and well served by all three actors.

Regina McCormack as Grace O'Malley brought a great earthiness to the role of the Pirate Queen and Bronach Joyce as Elizabeth 1st was regal, haughty and commanding. Conor Clarke played both Tibbott and Essex with great contrast and confidence.

Lighting and direction were spot on and the scene changes were seamless.

This is a play that leaves you wanting to know more about Grace O'Malley and deserves to be seen by a wider audience.'

 

John Rubin

'Just imagine I had to travel to the West Coast of Ireland to learn from a wonderful new play by Irish author Anne Chambers about a piece of Anglo-Irish history that has evaded me all these years, despite all the films and books on The Tudors and all the Documentaries made by the eminent Professor Dr David Starkey.

I will not tell you what I learnt and do a "spoiler" about this first play, so well written produced and directed by the author, but I will say that the staging and acting was of the highest standard and the story quite riveting. A sell out production each night with queues of people waiting and hoping in vain for ticket returns and in the end unfortunate to miss an excellent night's entertainment'.

 

Mary Darcy 

"We attended Matriarchs and loved it. So fabulous a performance...it got a standing ovation. Terrific performance by the aptly named Regina McCormack as Grace O. Elizabeth Regina was played by Bronagh Joyce whom I took to be
English so good was the accent. Earl of Essex was played by a school boy who was remarkably good for his age.

The whole notion of Grace O'Malley seemed mythical and yet she did exist. How she managed to have a mind of her own and leadership qualities at a time when the Church patriarchs (as well as husbands/fathers) did your thinking for you - is puzzling. Great scriptwriting by Anne C. She's certainly a marvel.''

 

T.K. Whitaker: Portrait of a Patriot

In 2002, an eighty-five-year-old former civil servant was voted 'Irishman of the Century'.

RANJI MAHARAJAH OF CONNEMARA

Indian Prince KS Ranjitsinhji was the most famous cricket-player of his generation

GRACE O’MALLEY

Fearless leader by land and by sea, political pragmatist and tactician, rebel, pirate and matriarch, the ’most notorious woman in all the coasts of Ireland’ GRACE O’MALLEY challenges and manipulates the turbulent politics of the 16th century

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Copyright © 2025 Grace O'Malley.com - Anne Chambers

Grace O'Malley: The Biography of Ireland's Pirate Queen, 1530-1603 is the sole published biographical account of Grace O’Malley, sourced from original manuscript material, both in public and in private domain. For the latter, the author, Anne Chambers, had sole and exclusive access. Much of this material was located and decyphered in its original form (i.e.16th century manuscripts) by the author and is exclusive to her book. Furthermore, the presentation, opinions and analyses in the book are exclusive to the author. The author reserves all her rights in this book. No part of her book may be reproduced or utilised in any form or media, written or oral, or by means digital, electronic or mechanical, including photographic, film, video recording, photocopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system. Permission from the author and publisher must first be obtained to reproduce any part of or quotations from the book. Any transgression in this regard will be addressed. For more information, comments or enquiries please contact: Info: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Copyright © 2025.

 

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