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​PRESENTERS AND PERFORMERS

ANNOUNCED

Debbie Allen, Corbin Bleu, Kristen Chenoweth,

Anthony Crivello, Joel Grey, Bebe Neuwirth,

Brooke Shields, Ben Vereen, and more to come

 

Mayte Natalio to receive the

Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics’ Choice Award

 

Phil LaDuca to receive the

Vanguard Award

 

and Bernadette Peters to receive the

Lifetime Achievement Award





Awards will be held on

Monday, May 20   

at the

NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts

(566 LaGuardia Place)



www.ChitaRiveraAwards.com




Presenters have been announced for the 2024 Chita Rivera Awards, being presented on May 20 at 7:30pm at the NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts (566 LaGuardia Place off Washington Square Park). The Chita Rivera Awards are produced by Joe Lanteri, Founder and Executive Director of the New York City Dance Alliance Foundation, Inc. in conjunction with Patricia Watt.

 

Presenters and performers include: Debbie Allen (Fame), Corbin Bleu (High School Musical, Little Shop…), Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked), Anthony Crivello (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Joel Grey (Cabaret), Bebe Neuwirth (Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, Chicago), Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan; The Adams Family), Ben Vereen (Pippin), and more.

 

In addition, Mayte Natalio (Suffs; How to Dance in Ohio) will receive the Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics’ Choice Award, Phil LaDuca will receive the Vanguard Award, for his outstanding contribution to the international dance community, and as previously announced, the Chita Rivera Awards will honor Bernadette Peters with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

 

The Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics' Choice Award is bestowed by the journalists of the Chita Rivera Awards' Broadway judging committee, to recognize outstanding work that falls outside the framework of the original categories. It is named for the longtime Daily News theater critic Douglas Watt and his wife Ethel, an original cast member of Carousel and Kiss Me, Kate who later became a producer.  

 

Tickets to the Chita Rivera Awards are available to the general public at www.ChitaRiveraAwards.com.

 

The mission of the Chita Rivera Awards is to celebrate dance and choreographic excellence, preserve notable dance history, recognize past, present, and future talents, while promoting high standards in dance education and investing in the next generation.

 

Nominators considered outstanding choreography, featured dancers, and ensemble in shows on Broadway, as well as outstanding choreography in film, that opened in the 2023-2024 season. Nominations for the productions under consideration this season will be determined by the designated nominating committee. There are separate nominating committees for Broadway and Film. There is also an awarding committee for Broadway, which determines the final nominations that are received from the Broadway nominations committee.

 

All proceeds of the Chita Rivera Awards benefit the NYC Dance Alliance Foundation Scholarship Program. The NYCDA Foundation is an IRS approved 501(c)(3) committed to broadening performing arts awareness while advocating education and high standards of excellence in dance. 

 

This year, all funding and proceeds will support the creation of a new Chita Rivera Training Scholarship.

 

 

2023-2024 CHITA RIVERA AWARD NOMINATING COMMITTEES

 



Awarding Committee

Chair: Sylviane Gold, Gary Chryst, Robert LaFosse, Wendy Perron, and Lee Roy Reams

 

Broadway Nominating Committee

Chair: Wendy Federman, Caitlin Carter, Gary Chryst, Don Correia, Jamie deRoy, Sandy Duncan, Peter Filichia, Dr. Louis Galli, Sylviane Gold, Jonathan Herzog, Robert La Fosse, Joe Lanteri, Michael Milton, Mary Beth O'Connor, Wendy Perron, Lee Roy Reams, Andy Sandberg, and Randy Skinner

 

Film Nominating Committee

Chair: Jonathan C. Herzog, Steven Caras, Wilhelmina Frankfurt, Mary Beth O’Connor, and Andy Sandberg

 

 

*  *  *

 

 

Tickets for the Chita Rivera Awards are currently on sale and can be purchased at www.ChitaRiveraAwards.com. Ticket prices are as follows: $125 for a balcony ticket to the Awards ceremony, $750 for an orchestra ticket to the Awards ceremony and admission to the pre-show red carpet cocktail party and VIP reception, and $7500 for 10 Orchestra tickets to the Awards ceremony, admission for 10 to the pre-show red carpet cocktail party & 1 table at the VIP reception.

 

 

*  *  *

 

 

ABOUT THE NYC DANCE ALLIANCE FOUNDATION, INC.

The NYC Dance Alliance Foundation, Inc. (NYCDAF), founded in 2010 by Executive Director Joe Lanteri, is committed to broadening performing arts awareness while advocating education and high standards of excellence in dance. The Foundation invests in the next generation of professional performers by offering scholarships for secondary and college education. To date, over 500 talented teenagers have shared in nearly $5 million awarded directly through NYCDAF. Those recipients are represented in 42 of the most prestigious university arts programs in the country. Many have since graduated and are now represented on Broadway, as well as concert dance companies based in NYC and around the world. www.NYCDAFoundation.net

 

 

MAYTE NATALIO

Mayte Natalio is from Queens, New York by way of her Dominican parents. Favorite Choreography credits include The Winter’s Tale (Dallas Theater Center/ Public Works), Runaways (NYU), Into The Woods (Barrington Stage Company), Measure for Measure (The Public Theater/ Mobile Unit), Love in Hate Nation (Two River Theater), Hair (The Old Globe), Kiss My Aztec (Hartford Stage), How To Dance In Ohio (Syracuse Stage) La Hora Santa written, directed and choreographed by Mayte for Ars Nova’s Vision Residency Program. Tribeca Film Festival Selected Film Playland directed by Georden West. Broadway: How to Dance in Ohio (2023) & Suffs (2024). 

 

 

 

2024 CHITA RIVERA AWARD NOMINATIONS

 

BROADWAY

 

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY IN A BROADWAY SHOW

Camille A Brown, Hell’s Kitchen

Julia Cheng, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Rick and Jeff Kuperman, The Outsiders

Lorin Latarro, The Heart of Rock and Roll / The Who’s Tommy (joint nomination)

Justin Peck, Illinoise

Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, Water for Elephants

 

 

OUTSTANDING DANCER IN A BROADWAY SHOW

Antoine Boissereau, Water for Elephants

Ben Cook, Illinoise

Chloe Davis, Hell’s Kitchen

Gaby Diaz, Illinoise

Tilly Evans-Krueger, The Outsiders

Rachel Lockhart, Illinoise

Phillip Johnson Richardson, The Wiz

Byron Tittle, Illinoise

Ricky Ubeda, Illinoise

Avery Wilson, The Wiz

                       

 

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE IN A BROADWAY SHOW

Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Hell’s Kitchen

Illinoise

The Heart of Rock and Roll

The Outsiders

Water for Elephants

                       

FILM & DOCUMENTARY

 

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY IN A THEATRICAL RELEASE

Barbie, Choreographer: Jennifer White

Carmen, Choreographer: Benjamin Millepied / Marina Tamayo

Color Purple, Choreographer: Fatima Robinson

Mean Girls, Choreographer: Kyle Hanagami

Wonka, Choreographer: Christopher Gattelli

 

 

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A DANCE DOCUMENTARY

Daughters, Directors: Angela Patton / Natalie Rae

Eldorado: Everything the Nazis Hate, Directors: Benjamin Cantu / Matt Lambert

Lift, Director: David Petersen

Studio One Forever, Director: Marc Saltarelli  

Swan Song, Director: Chelsea McMullan
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© 2025 Michael Phoenix
  • FireCity Illusion
  • June 8 2025 Edition
    • Holidays >
      • Red White and Blue To Do 2025
    • Politics >
      • Statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
      • Failure to Pass One Big Beautiful Bill
      • President Trump Met With Standing Ovation
      • Micron Announces Massive Chip Investments
    • Alabama >
      • Gov Ivey Appoints Laurie Hoyt
    • Connecticut >
      • Gov Lamont State Grants 23 Blighted Properties
    • Iowa >
      • Gov Reynolds Acts on Final Bills 2025
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      • Gov Reynolds Expand Firefighter Cancer Coverage
      • Gov Reynolds Reform Unemployment Insurance Taxes
    • Michigan >
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      • Gov Whitmer Appointments Commissions June 5
    • Missouri >
      • Gov Kehoe Response to Civil Unrest
    • Tennessee >
      • Gov Lee Announces Key Leadership Transition
      • Gov Lee Departure of Butch Eley
    • Utah >
      • Gov Cox Appoints John Deeds
      • Gov Cox Announces Family Connection Week
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  • Archives 2025
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