Just when you think you’ve seen Olympia Dukakis’s most dynamic performance she “wows” us in yet another incredible role. Whether on the screen or on stage, Dukakis has the ability, through her extraordinary talent, to capture the hearts of her audiences. Since taking home the Golden Statue, better known as “Oscar” in 1988 for her role in the romantic comedy Moonstruck, it just seems to get better each time she does.
Though it’s always thrilling to see what Dukakis is going to star in next, one might wonder what is her ‘heart project’? What film is yet to be produced that weighs heavy on the heart of Olympia Dukakis? That was my question before I learned about Three Candles, a documentary narrated by Dukakis with a focus on the true life experiences of women exiled to Trikeri Island, the largest women’s concentration camp during the Greek Civil War. Seven notebooks, written in secrecy by women of genuine strength, were found several years later, which led to the making of this powerful documentary.
Stavroula Toska, co-director and producer of Three Candles, recently shared her thoughts about Dukakis: “’From the heart,’ Olympia said to me the night before she left on a recent trip to Los Angeles. ‘Anything you do in life Stavroula mou, it’s got to come from the heart and do it with all your heart. That’s what we Greeks say, eh’.”
Toska went on to say “I should be used to Olympia giving me advice that leads me to tears by now, but I’m not. To say that it’s an honor and a privilege to know and work with her would be an understatement. Every moment I spend with Olympia since we began working on Three Candles has made me more honest, more courageous and ever so more passionate of my work as a filmmaker. I can’t wait to share Three Candles with the world. It’s a story that Olympia has wanted to bring to life for close to thirty years now...a story that has changed my life forever.”
During a career that has spanned more than forty years, Dukakis has worked as an actress, director, producer, teacher, author and activist. And she just keeps on going! Currently, you can catch Olympia Dukakis in Morris Panych’s Vigil at the Mark Taper Theater in Los Angeles through December 18. Dukakis stars as Grace, a woman of few words and the aunt of Kemp, who–after thirty years–has traveled cross-country to be with her on her deathbed. Variety calls it, “Wickedly dark…hilarious, quirky and heartfelt.” In other words, it is yet another ‘must see’ performance by a legend in our own time: Olympia Dukakis.