Olympia Dukakis (1931-2021) was an actor who inspires. She was a fighter, forced to contend with her upbringing as a first-generation Greek American and the paucity of parts early in her career, given her ethnic background. She was generous and down-to-earth, open and willing to answer just about any question. She was also on a lifelong quest, to perfect her art, and perhaps most important of all to understand — who she was and what the world is. Watch the trailer here.
Thanks to Harry Mavromichalis, producer and director of the documentary Olympia, for joining us on Zoom for our June 23 screening, and to director David Antoniuk, who came in person to the Revue Cinema. He directed the short 2018 drama Eleftheromania, in which Olympia played her last film role. Eleftheromania, which you can watch on Vimeo explores a true story of Greek prisoners at Auschwitz, faced with the choice of forcing fellow prisoners to the gas chambers or dying themselves.
For both of them, working with Olympia was the highlight of their careers. She was a powerful woman, generous, unpretentious and open, a consummate professional in her craft, a perpetual student on a spiritual quest, opening her heart to the divine feminine of ancient cultures.
This film is a fascinating portrait of an inspiring and thought-provoking woman. Don’t miss it! Get your ticket on Eventbrite (suggested donation) or at the door.
Here are a couple of intriguing facts about Dukakis:
- She earned her first degree in physiotherapy, and worked with patients during the height of the polio epidemic.
- She was in her first play at 13, a fundraiser for the Greek war effort. That’s where her passion for acting began.
- In college, she was New England fencing champion for three years, having adopted a particularly aggressive style.
- Growing up in Lowell, Mass., where at the time prejudice against Greeks was routine, she would fight injustice and defend the marginalized all of her life. She was a strong supporter of the LGBTQ+ community.
- One day in a book store, When God was a Woman by Merlin Stone fell off the shelf, landing at her feet. That was one of the serendipitous experiences that put her on her quest to connect with the Divine Feminine, worshipped in ancient cultures. She studied with an Indian spiritual teacher, Gayatri Devi, for two decades. Here’s an article about Dukakis and her quest.
- Over her career, she was in more than 130 stage productions, 60 films and 50 TV series. Film director Harry Mavromichalis says her favourite roles were Mrs. Madrigal in the controversial TV series Tales of the City, where she plays a trans woman, and Brecht’s Mother Courage.
- Tales of the City was viewed as a huge affirmation for the gay community in the media when it was launched in 1993. It drew such a backlash from the American political right, that PBS was forced to drop the show after one season or face loss of government funding. The show proved to be PBS’s most popular dramatic program, and was later picked up by other networks. Years later, she was honoured as Celebrity Grand Marshal in San Francisco’s 2011 Pride parade. Watch episodes from the 1993 Season 1 of Tales of the City on YouTube.
- She had a strong Canadian connection, including working with Canadian directors Norman Jewison and Sarah Polley.
Our Extraordinary Women Series will resume in September.