Diva Alert #14: Chita Rivera : PerformerStuff More Good Stuff

Diva Alert #14: Chita Rivera

Written by Jackson Upperco

August 30, 2017

Welcome back to Diva Alert, Performer Stuff’s series on Great Dames from the Golden Age of Broadway. In these posts, we’re taking a look at some of the American Musical Theatre’s most legendary ladies, along with their seminal stage triumphs.

Broadway’s street-smart Puerto Rican vixen, its sultry Spanish Rose, its deadly jazz-lovin’ vaudevillian; the muse of Kander and Ebb; a favorite vessel of Fosse – her career boasts triumphs and failures. She’s America and all that jazz. She is… Chita Rivera.

Rivera was only 15 when she got accepted into George Balanchine’s School of American Ballet in New York City. After appearing in the 1952 touring company of Call Me Madam, the nimble half Puerto Rican diva made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the dancing ensemble of Guys And Dolls. Following a similar position in Can-Can, she originated small roles in Seventh Heaven (1955), Mr. Wonderful (1956), and Shinbone Alley (1957).

Rivera’s big break came in Bernstein & Sondheim’s iconic West Side Story (1957), in which she played the fiery Anita. This led to another leading role opposite Dick Van Dyke in the classic Bye Bye Birdie (1960). The now Tony-nominated performer endured several flops in the ‘60s – including two new musicals that closed before reaching New York – and was passed over for the film adaptations of her two most famous works.

However, this period proved important, teaming her with Bob Fosse in the National Tour and film version of Sweet Charity, and with songsmiths Kander & Ebb in the touring company of Zorba. All three men were instrumental in Rivera’s next hit, Chicago (1975), in which she played a Jazz Age murderess. It took nearly a decade to find another hit – although each post-Chicago Broadway appearance earned her a Tony nod.

Rivera triumphed again in 1984 with Kander & Ebb’s The Rink, for which she won her first Tony. Over the next 30+ years, the saucy dancer became the songwriters’ best muse – appearing in two more of their originals: Kiss Of The Spider Woman (1993), for which she won another Tony, and The Visit (2015). Other works in this period included a Jerry Herman revue, revivals of Nine and The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and a one-woman show.

Still performing, Rivera is tied as having the most individual Tony nominations – ten. She also has the distinction of being the first Latina performer to be honored by the Kennedy Center, and is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. An inspiration; a broad; an American classic – she is indeed a Great Dame. Dun. That Jazz. Dun.

DID YOU KNOW? Rivera recurred for a season alongside her former Bye Bye Birdie co-star in his 1970s sitcom, The New Dick Van Dyke Show. See a rare clip here:

Rivera Roles You Should Know

Anita in West Side Story (1957)

It’ll forever be a great cinematic shame that Rivera never got to recreate her performance as the spitfire of this Bernstein and Sondheim masterpiece. Oh well; at least we have the cast album!

Rose in Bye Bye Birdie (1960)

A bonafide leading lady for the first time in her career, this role as Dick Van Dyke’s love interest earned the diva her first of ten Tony nominations! Here she is performing live on Ed Sullivan.

Velma in Chicago (1975)

Although Chicago became a much hotter commodity thanks to its long-running revival and Oscar-winning film adaptation, nothing matches the gritty vaudevillian sensibilities of the original.

Anna in The Rink (1984)

Back again with a Kander and Ebb score, Rivera played the owner of a dilapidated roller skating rink. Here she is with Liza, who played her daughter, singing “The Apple Doesn’t Fall.”

Spider Woman / Aurora in Kiss Of The Spider Woman (1993)

Rivera played a movie star (and the titular spider woman), the subject of an imprisoned gay man’s fantasies, in this poetic musical drama courtesy of Kander & Ebb. This won her a second Tony.

Claire in The Visit (2015)

Our diva first played this show, with a Kander & Ebb score and a Terrence McNally book, in a 2001 Chicago production that never went to Broadway. It finally got there nearly 14 years later.

Hungry for more theatre history? Check out our other stories below!

Jackson Upperco is a lover of retro television, forgotten Broadway musicals, and Pre-Code Hollywood. He boasts a Bachelors Degree in Film and Television from Boston University. You can keep up with all of his entertainment interests at jacksonupperco.com.