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Throughout her career, Jessica Frances Dukes has brought depth, strength, and individuality to women whose stories leave a lasting impression. From portraying FBI Special Agent Birdie Polk in The Westies, a character whose development was inspired in part by Sylvia Mathis, the first African-American woman to become an FBI Special Agent, to her memorable performances in Ozark and The Gilded Age, Dukes approaches each role with curiosity, intention, and a deep appreciation for bringing her characters’ experiences and stories to life. In this interview, Dukes reflects on the importance of representation, her journey through theater and television, and the transformative experiences that have shaped her career, sharing what continues to inspire her as an artist.

You’re stepping into the role of Birdie Polk in The Westies, a bold FBI agent inspired by a woman in history. What initially interested you about this role, and what made you want to tell her story?

Birdie Polk is an amalgamation of every law enforcement individual on the task force that took down the Westies. Chris Brancato and Michael Panes gave us wonderful creative freedom, along with incredible, gritty writing, the foundation of her job, and a great scene partner, before allowing us to bring the rest to life. I based her character on the men and women, both Black and white, whom I came across in my research. My favorite, of course, was Sylvia Mathis, the first Black female FBI agent at the time. I used Sylvia as the foundation for exploring the furthest possibilities of what Birdie’s backstory could have been. However, in our story, Birdie is placed in a leadership position that would have been virtually unheard of for a Black woman in 1980. It was a joy to bring this Special Agent in Charge to life and challenge the perceptions of leadership during that era.

Birdie is based on Sylvia Mathis, the first African-American woman to become an FBI Special Agent. How did learning about her story influence your portrayal of Birdie?

Learning about Sylvia Mathis was a major turning point in my research for Birdie. I researched the entire team responsible for taking down the Westies, the Gambinos, and other crime families. I studied their gestures, mannerisms, accents, and the matter-of-fact way the men leading the investigation carried themselves. But when it came to developing Birdie’s backstory, I knew I needed to find someone who looked like me. Sylvia Mathis became my primary point of reference. She earned a degree in political science from New York University and a J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law. She was an exceptional individual. In 1976, her law school dean encouraged her to apply to the FBI Academy, at a time when only 41 of the 8,500 FBI agents were women, and none were Black. That told me everything I needed to know about the woman Sylvia was and the woman I wanted Birdie to be.

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How did you balance making Birdie your own character while drawing inspiration from Sylvia Mathis’s life?

Birdie was always Birdie, even before I began studying Sylvia, thanks to Chris Brancato and Michael Panes’ brilliant writing. She jumped off the page for me. It was so exciting to read her snarkiness! The relationship between her and Keenan was particularly interesting to me. The way she manipulates him, pokes at him, and investigates him as a person gave me so much to explore as an actor. I don’t know why Chris and Michael chose to cast a Black woman in this role, but I trusted every aspect of the undertaking, especially as a fan of their work.

What do you hope viewers learn from Birdie’s story, especially those who may not know about Sylvia Mathis and her place in FBI history?

I hope viewers learn to trust a woman in charge. I hope they leave excited about the possibilities of what Birdie and Keenan can accomplish together, or perhaps terrified of how it will all unfold. Birdie is sharp, astute, and observant. She’s from the neighborhood; she knows these guys. They don’t faze her, nor do the people higher up in her department who question her every move. She works exceptionally hard and won’t let up until she achieves her goals. My favorite thing about her is her unconventional approach to getting things done because, as she says, “You gotta use a criminal to catch a criminal.” Keenan is the most unconventional choice to bring on board for this case, but so is she, and she knows exactly what she’s doing.

Looking back on your time filming Ozark, what is one of your biggest takeaways from the experience or from playing Maya Miller?

My experience on the set of Ozark was a complete masterclass. I received my Master of Fine Arts twice over because of that show. Jason Bateman is a wealth of knowledge and experience, and a joy to be around. Working alongside him for a couple of years truly shaped the kind of artist I am and the kind I aspire to be on set. Watching Laura Linney work and having the opportunity to collaborate with her face-to-face, playing, creating, and building together, is something I will carry with me for the rest of my life. She was one of the top five people I hoped to work with throughout my career, so I’m incredibly grateful to have shared that artistic space with her.

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What was it like stepping back into Athena Trumbo’s role for the upcoming season of The Gilded Age?

Oh, I’m excited for them to see the absolute perfection that is The Gilded Age. I had been a fan of the show before joining, much like Ozark. Coming from a theatre background and being part of a cast alongside some of the greats of both stage and screen is a joy that is impossible to put into words. I’m so excited to be back this season and to step into this world for a few special moments. Sonja Warfield, Erica Armstrong Dunbar, and Sally Richardson-Whitfield are three brilliant women whom I deeply admire. I love learning from them on set. Their work, along with that of the rest of the creative team and cast, is absolutely stellar, and it’s an honor to be in the room where it happens.

What are you most excited for viewers to see from Athena this season?

Playing Athena is so much fun. She’s the ultimate source of positivity, joy, and ambition, and being back in the room with such elite talent is an honor. How cool is this job? I just love traveling through history, jumping from one role to another and from one world to the next. Stepping into The Gilded Age feels like stepping into the most beautiful fairy tale. You can hardly breathe, but it’s beautiful and worth it!

You made your Broadway debut in Trouble in Mind alongside LaChanze. What was the most memorable part of that experience, and what did you take away from it?

I dreamed of Broadway from the time I was a little girl, maybe five or six years old. The most memorable moment in that journey was moving from the rehearsal room into the Broadway theater and stepping onto that stage for the very first time. I cried so hard because I had finally made it to Broadway. To make my Broadway debut alongside a cast of such greats was an experience beyond words, and I’m so thankful to Charles Randolph-Wright for trusting me with this story and with Millie. This play was such a special moment for all of us, bringing these words to life more than 60 years after they were originally intended to appear on Broadway. To be part of the team that finally brought them to the stage is something I will always cherish.

How did working on Lynn Nottage’s By the Way, Meet Vera Stark challenge you or help you grow as an actress?

By the Way, Meet Vera Stark changed my life. Landing my first leading role on a New York stage is a big deal for any theatre actress, and for it to be in this particular show felt like kismet. I’m so thankful to Lynn Nottage and Kamilah Forbes for trusting me with this undertaking at Signature Theatre, which was also a dream venue for me. This show came into my life when I was five years into living in New York. Vera’s character is five years into her life in LA, and every night, I got to manifest my future alongside her. With every performance, I felt as though I was putting my dreams out into the world. It’s a play about the industry, but also about the relentless belief in what you were put on this earth to do. It was an absolute honor to bring Vera to life for those audiences every night.

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Winning both an Obie Award and an AUDELCO Award is a special milestone in your theater career. What did those achievements mean to you?

Receiving the Obie Award was a complete shock, an incredible honor, and a moment I’ll never forget. It was my very first show in New York: Bootycandy by Robert O’Hara. I thought we were attending an event to celebrate Robert receiving an award. I had no idea I would be walking home with one of New York City’s most prestigious honors alongside each of my castmates. I look at it every day, sitting right next to my AUDELCO Award, which was also an absolute honor to receive. To be recognized by your own community for something you’ve worked so hard on is incredibly meaningful. All the Veras deserve that award! I hold it in honor of all of you and in honor of us as a people.

What was your experience like working on Robert O’Hara’s Bootycandy, and what made this production stand out to you?

Bootycandy changed my life twice, and Robert O’Hara changed my life multiple times. I was part of the original cast in DC before the show moved to New York. Sitting around the table with such an incredible cast and creative team while Robert wrote and developed this new play was the most exciting roller coaster ride I’ve ever been on. We’d get a sketch, put it on its feet, work it out, and then come back the next day only to find it had been cut, but there were five new ones in its place. It felt like In Living Color, Mad TV, or Saturday Night Live. Ten sketches, eight characters. It was such a rush, and I could have done that show for the rest of my life. When the show moved off-Broadway to Playwrights Horizons in NYC, I auditioned but didn’t book the role. A week before rehearsals began, the woman playing the role I had originated backed out, and my phone rang. There was just one catch: I had to move to New York in one week. I packed seven bags onto the bottom of the BoltBus, sold my car, put the rest of my belongings in a storage unit, and left DC. I slept on a friend’s floor for the first few weeks of rehearsals just to make this dream a reality. I’m still on the ride, and I’m loving it!

What do you find most challenging about preparing for a live stage performance compared to preparing for a television role?

You know, it’s the same character preparation for me. It’s the same questions, the same investigation, and the same breakdown of whatever script I’m working with to uncover its twists, turns, and beats. What differs is the amount of information I have. In theatre, I have the entire script from beginning to end. We sit down as an entire team and do extensive table work together, then work beat by beat to find the flow, rhythm, and pace long before an audience is invited into the story. With television, I’m creating on my own, sometimes with just one or two scripts to begin with. Occasionally, you get lucky and receive the entire season, but trust me, it will change. Sometimes you only have the first and second scripts, and you have to pray that what you’ve created will carry through the rest of the story, even though you haven’t read the writing yet. You are your own rehearsal. There is no “Let’s rehearse this for a few weeks and get this right.” You show up ready for opening night. You get there, shake hands, get some thoughts from the director, meet your scene partner, and then it’s curtain up.

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With so many exciting projects, what are you most looking forward to in this next chapter of your career?

It’s been absolutely wonderful filming so many projects back-to-back and working alongside artistic giants of the stage and screen, bringing incredible stories to life through the work of talented writers and directors. I look forward to continuing to be in the room with astonishing levels of talent, creating art that changes the world, challenges people’s perspectives on how they live, inspires them to dream, and empowers them to fight for what they believe in. Those are the kinds of grand, layered, and complex worlds and stories I want to create.

CREW CREDITS:
Talent: Jessica Frances Dukes
PhotoBook Editor-In-Chief: Alison Hernon
PhotoBook Creative Director + Photographer + Producer: Mike Ruiz
Fashion Stylist: Alison Hernon at Exclusive Artists
Hair: Antoinette Hill
Makeup: Deyona McGriff
Photography Assistant: Dani Sax
Assistant Fashion Stylist: Emma Green
Fashion Styling Intern: Ciara Mahoney and Martina Pavone
Interview by Ali Rosoff, Contributor, PhotoBook Magazine
Tearsheets by Daniel Lopez, Art Director, PhotoBook Magazine

A Story Worth Telling: Jessica Frances Dukes on Her Journey as an Artist