Chita Rivera was born Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero in Washington, DC on January 23 1933. Her father was a clarinettist and saxophonist of Puerto Rican descent. Her father died of cancer when she was only seven years old. As a little girl she was very active and a bit of a tomboy. Her mother then enrolled her in dance class. She was 14 years old when she won a scholarship The School of American Ballet in New York City. She auditioned for Jerome Robbins when she was still a teenager. In 1952 he hired as the principal dancer in the road company of Call Me Madam. She initially went by Conchita del Rivero. She later shortened it to Chita Rivero, then decided Chita Rivera sounded better.
Chita Rivera made her debut on Broadway as a dancer in Guys and Dolls. In the Fifties she also performed on Broadway in Can-Can, Seventh Heaven, and Mr. Wonderful. It was in 1957 that she originated the role of Anita in West Side Story. In 1960 she played Rose Grant in Bye Bye Birdie and continued to play the role into the early Sixties.
In the Sixties Chita Rivera appeared on Broadway in Bajour. In the Seventies she starred as Velma Kelly in Chicago. In the Eighties she reprised the role of Rose in Bring Back Birdie and appeared on Broadway in Merlin, The Rink, and Jerry's Girls. In the Seventies Chita Rivera appeared in Kiss of the Spider Woman. In the Naughts she had her own show on Broadway, Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life, and she also appeared in the musical Nine. In the Teens she appeared in The Mystery of Edwin Drood and The Visit.
Chita Rivera also appeared frequently on television. In the Fifties she appeared on such variety and talk shows as Frankie Laine Time, Tonight!, Caesar's Hour, The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, The Voice of Firestone, Sunday Night at the Palladium, The Revlon Revue, and The Ed Sullivan Show. In the Sixties she made her television acting debut in an episode of The Outer Limits in 1964. She appeared on such talk and variety shows as The Judy Garland Show, Blackpool Night Out, Juke Box Jury, On Broadway Tonight, The Entertainers, ABC's Nightlife, The Dean Martin Show, The Garry Moore Show, Las Vegas, Gypsy, The Woody Woodbury Show, The Hollywood Palace, The John Gary Show, That's Life, The Joey Bishop Show, and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
In the Seventies Miss Rivera appeared in the TV movies The Marcus-Nelson Murders and Once Upon a Brothers Grimm. She was a regular on The New Dick Van Dyke Show. She guest starred on Captain Kangaroo. She appeared on such talk and variety shows as The Carol Burnett Show, Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell, Dinah!, Sammy and Company, The Mike Douglas Show, Be My Guest, The Bobby Vinton Show, The Chuck Barris Rah-Rah Show, The Jim Nabors Show, The Merv Griffin Show, and De Mike Burstyn Show.
In the Eighties Chita Rivera appeared on the daytime soap opera One Life to Live. In the Nineties she was a guest voice on Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child. In the Naughts she guest starred on Will & Grace. She was also a guest voice on Dora the Explorer In the late Teens and early Twenties she was a regular on the streaming series Stars in the House. From the Eighties to the Teens, Chita Rivera continued to regularly appear on a variety of talk shows.
Chita Rivera made her film debut in Sweet Charity in 1969. She later appeared in Chicago (2002), Kalamazo? (2006), and tick...tick...BOOM! (2021).
Chita Rivera was an incredible dancer. She was extremely flexible, and could actually touch the back of her head with her foot. She was also a great singer, gifted with a powerful, emotive voice. With such talent she originated some of the most iconic moments on Broadway, from "America" in West Side Story to "All That Jazz" in Chicago. Of course, she was also a very good actress. She held her own with Martin Landau and Sally Kellerman in the Outer Limits episode "The Bellero Shield." She also gave a good performance as Nickie in the film version of Sweet Charity. Chita Rivera was an incredible talent.
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