Olympia Dukakis Biography

New York appearances: Rose (Outer Critics Circle Award), Social Security directed by Mike Nichols, Who's Who in Hell, The Aspern Papers, Night of the Iguana, Christopher Durang's The Marriage of Bette and Boo (Obie Award), Sam Shepard's Curse of the Starving Class, Peer Gynt, Titus Andronicus, Electra, Vaclav Havel's Memorandum, Brecht's A Man's a Man (Obie Award), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and A View From the Bridge (Theatre World Award). Regional theatre: over 120 productions including founding member and Producing Artistic Director of the Whole Theatre in Montclair, NJ for 19 years, where she directed and appeared in many productions; Timberlake Wertenbaker's Hecuba and Leslie Ayvazian's Singer's Boy (A.C.T.); Lear and her Daughters (Shakespeare & Co.); Trinity Rep's The Glass Menagerie and The Hope Zone; and Williamstown Theatre Festival for 13 seasons where she also served as Associate Director, most recently Hecuba and The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore. London: Rose (world premiere at the Royal National Theatre). Films: Moonstruck (Academy Award, Best Supporting Actress; NY Film Critics, L.A. Film Critics and Golden Globe awards); Better Living; Picture Perfect with Jennifer Aniston and Kevin Bacon; Mafia!; Mr. Holland's Opus with Richard Dreyfus; Woody Allen's Mighty Aphrodite; I Love Trouble with Nick Nolte and Julia Roberts; Look Who's Talking 1, Too and Now! with John Travolta and Kirstie Alley; The Cemetery Club; Steel Magnolias directed by Herbert Ross; and Dad co-starring Jack Lemmon. Television: the two mini-series based on Armistead Maupin's novels, "Tales of the City" and "More Tales of the City" (Emmy, Screen Actors Guild and BAFTA nominations); "Young at Heart" co-starring Frank Sinatra and Louis Zorich (Emmy nomination); "Lucky Day" co-starring Amy Madigan (Emmy nomination); "A Match Made in Heaven," with John Stamos and Della Reese; "The Last Act Is Solo" (ACE Award); the mini-series "Sinatra," as Frank Sinatra's mother (Emmy nomination); and for British TV "A Life for a Life" (BAFTA nomination). Other: NJ Governor's Walt Whitman Creative Arts Award; was active in Michael Dukakis' 1988 presidential campaign; and founding member of The National Museum of Women in the Arts. She is married to actor Louis Zorich, and they have three children, Christina, Peter and Stefan.