Launching her career, as an actress, in the mid-1980s, Dankworth appeared in many productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company. A regular performer in the theaters of London's West End, she appeared in such shows as the Ellington revue, #Sophisticated Ladies, Stephen Sondheim's #Into The Woods and Christopher Hampton's #Les Liasons Dangereuses.
Turning to music, Dankworth toured the Orient with the Alec and Jacqui Dankworth Quintet, a group she formed with her brother, Alec. She later toured India with the John Dexter Company and shared a duo with pianist David Gordon. In 1996, she toured, along with Monica Vasconcelos, Norma Winstone and Christine Tobin, in saxophonist Tim Garland's musical production, #Songs Of Love And Hatred. ~ Craig Harris, Rovi