This sublimely intimate fly-on-the-wall verité documentary tells the poignant story of a woman finding her own voice on her own terms to assert a gigantic creative force into the world. Rebelling against her old world, panty-sniffing, suspicious Greek mother to assert her strong sexual drive, fighting the feeling she was “too ethnic” amid the Boston Brahmin at BU, and starting her own theatre company in New Jersey instead of waiting for the phone to ring, Olympia Dukakis models how to live life with blazing courage.
Throughout an engrossing story that seamlessly blends past and present, she opens her heart and exposes her truest self to the audience. The raw honesty with which Olympia leads us into the core of her self is what makes this film luminary. As fellow actors with whom she has shared the limelight Laura Linney, Diane Ladd, Whoopi Goldberg, and Austin Pendleton all testify, Olympia is “totally open and crazy”, which is what turns out to be the marker of her absolute sanity.
This intimate portrait of a working-class professional, a scholar actor of intense intuitive power, and a woman beloved around the world, culminates on the steps of the Dukakis’ humble ancestral home in Lesbos, Greece. Here we see Olympia’s life come full circle, both personally and professionally.
Incandescent and unforgettable, Olympia is a must-see documentary for anyone seeking to reignite their love of drama and their love of life.
OLYMPIA DUKAKIS
Olympia Dukakis was born June 20th, 1931 in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of Greek immigrants. She earned two degrees from Boston University, one in Physical Therapy and one in Acting.
Olympia won an Academy Award for her performance in Moonstruck, a role that also earned her a Golden Globe Award, American Comedy Award, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress. She has appeared in more than 60 feature and short films, including Steel Magnolias, Cloudburst, Dad, Mr. Holland’s Opus, Working Girl, Look Who’s Talking I, II & III, Mighty Aphrodite, Jeffrey, Away From Her, among many others.
Television: Big Driver, Sex & Violence, Forgive Me, Bored to Death, Last of the Blond Bombshells, Sinatra (Golden Globe Nominee), Joan of Arc (Emmy Nominee), Tales of the City, More Tales of the City (Emmy Nominee), Further Tales of the City among more than 40 others.
She has performed in over 130 productions on and off-Broadway and regionally at theatres including the Public Theater, A.C.T., Shakespeare in the Park, Shakespeare & Co., and the Williamstown Theatre Festival, where she also served as Associate Director. She was a Founding member and Producing Artistic Director of the Whole Theatre in Montclair, NJ, for 19 years; also a founding member of the Actor’s Company and the Charles Playhouse in Boston.
She continues to teach acting at NYU and give master classes for professional theatre companies, colleges, and universities across the country. She was bestowed the National Arts Club Medal of Honor and her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was placed in 2013.
Harry Mavromichalis
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
Harry’s directing and producing credits include “Olympia”; the award-winning, critically-acclaimed feature documentary on Academy Award-winning actress Olympia Dukakis and “Yankee Restraint”; a character driven piece that examines the intricacies of a gay relationship spanning decades and tackles issues of love and resentment. Harry has dual citizenship from the United States and Cyprus. After working professionally as a modern dancer and choreographer he went back to school and received his Masters in Film Directing from New York University. He is a writer, director, producer with multiple short films, music videos and commercials under his belt. Harry curated the first LGBTQ Film Festival and was one of the key organizers of the 1st Pride Parade in Cyprus.
Also participating will be Sally Vahle
https://danceandtheatre.unt.edu/faculty-staff/sally-vahle who worked with Olympia at Dallas Theater Center
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