Recently we invited our advisory board members to tell us what is on their minds these days, to share their current projects, milestones, and emerging collaborations. Cristina’s is the first post for this series.
In these times, too many of us have lost treasured friends. We acknowledge all such losses, and offer condolences and comfort to Cristina and to everyone who has experienced such a loss.
OLYMPIA by Cristina Biaggi
I first met Olympia at Marija Gimbutas’ deathbed. I was a friend of Marija’s and had visited her at Topanga Canyon , corresponded with her by letters and by phone and saw and interacted with her regularly at conferences. Olympia was also a friend and admirer of hers. When I last saw Marija in the hospital in Los Angeles, she was on dialysis. Joan Marler and Vicki Noble were already there . When I entered her room we immediately started talking about consequential things and Marija seemed very cheered by our presence and by our conversation which she joined. She was totally lucid and sharp.
Suddenly Olympia Dukakis and a friend of hers swept into the room with some fanfare. She was bearing gifts – a lot of Greek delicacies and some Retsina. Olympia had just won the Academy Award for her performance in Moonstruck and she was now a celebrity and the nurses were excited by her presence and didn’t dare object when we became livelier and livelier and started feeding Marija some of the delicacies (Tzaziki, Taramosalata etc.) Marija was thoroughly enjoying this and was very happy to see Olympia. Suddenly the head nurse appeared, interrupting the merriment and absolutely forbade us to feed Marija who she said was very sick and on dialysis. So we stopped feeding Marija and went into another mode.
We each took a part of her: her head, her hands, her feet, her legs and started to gently massage her while singing to her. This went on for quite a while maybe an hour. Everyone was very soothed by this including Marija who almost fell asleep and had a beatific look on her face. We all felt very happy then and there. After a while the head nurse came back and told us we had to leave because now they had to take care of Marija medically.
I saw Marija for the last time the next morning, before I returned to New York. Two days later, Marija died. I immediately contacted Olympia and we got together and planned an incredible memorial for Marija in NYC which was attended by hundreds of people and lasted five hours. Countless speakers and some singers took the podium. It was extremely emotional and very productive.
I’ve been Olympia’s friend ever since, having lunch and dinner with her regularly, seeing all of her performances on and off Broadway and her many movies. We’ve had some incredible and deep conversations about all sorts of subjects. I’ve seen Moonstruck at least 10 times. Olympia told me that a lot of the lines that her character, Rose Castorini , says in the movie were directly drawn from her own Mother. She’s been a wonderful friend and has supported me with her words with many of my endeavors. I even “got her a movie job” in the movie The Last Keepers, where she played the matriarch in a long line of female mystics who practiced their magical traditions in secret for centuries. I was “The Goddess Consultant” in this movie which also featured Aidan Quinn and Zosia Mamet. “Goddess Consultant” meant that I, (with the help of Donna Henes – NYC Urban Shaman) wrote the script for the spiritual ceremonies in the movie. Olympia, of course, was in all of those scenes and gave a certain authenticity to the movie.
I shall greatly miss my friend Olympia and our unreserved, candid and passionate conversations. I will also miss seeing her exceptional dramatic talent on the stage and on the screen.
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