Winners of the 2024 Chita Rivera Awards were named in a ceremony at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts May 20 hosted by Jared Grimes (Funny Girl). Broadway's Hell's Kitchen and Water for Elephants tied for Outstanding Choreography in a Broadway Show (for Camille A. Brown and the team of Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, respectively).
Other wins went to Water for Elephants' Antoine Boissereau and The Outsiders' Tilly Evans-Krueger for Outstanding Dancer in a Broadway Show; and the company of Illinoise for Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show.
Named for the late Broadway icon, the awards celebrate dance and choreographic excellence: past, present, and future. Through education and scholarships, the Chita Rivera Awards are also committed to nurturing future generations, as well as preserving notable dance history.
Performers and presenters for the starry evening included Wayne Brady (The Wiz), Huey Lewis (The Heart of Rock and Roll), Norm Lewis (Phantom of the Opera), Joe Morton (Scandal), Debbie Allen (Sweet Charity), Shoshana Bean (Hell’s Kitchen), Corbin Bleu (Little Shop of Horrors), Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked), Anthony Crivello (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Bebe Neuwirth (Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club), Kenny Ortega (High School Musical), David Hyde Pierce (Here We Are), Brooke Shields (The Addams Family), and Ben Vereen (Pippin). Attendees also enjoyed performances from the casts of Broadway's The Heart of Rock and Roll and The Who’s Tommy.
As previously announced, this year's Chita Rivera Awards also recognized three-time Tony recipient Bernadette Peters with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Tony and Oscar winner Joel Grey, who shared the stage with Peters in Broadway's George M!, presented the Broadway favorite with her award.
Mayte Natalio (Suffs, How to Dance in Ohio) received the Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics’ Choice Award, recognizing outstanding work that falls outside the framework of the original categories; and Phil LaDuca received the Vanguard Award for his outstanding contribution to the international dance community.
See the full list of winners below:
Broadway
Outstanding Choreography in a Broadway Show (tie)
WINNER - 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
Justin Peck, Illinoise
WINNER - Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, Water for Elephants
Outstanding Dancer in a Broadway Show
WINNER - Antoine Boissereau, Water for Elephants
Ben Cook, Illinoise
Chloe Davis, Hell’s Kitchen
Gaby Diaz, Illinoise
WINNER - 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
WINNER - Illinoise
The Heart of Rock and Roll
The Outsiders
Water for Elephants
Film
Outstanding Choreography in a Theatrical Release
WINNER - Jennifer White, Barbie
Benjamin Millepied and Marina Tamayo, Carmen
Fatima Robinson, The Color Purple
Kyle Hanagami and Casey Nicholaw, Mean Girls
Christopher Gattelli, Wonka
Outstanding Direction of a Dance Documentary
Angela Patton and Natalie Rae, Daughters
Benjamin Cantu and Matt Lambert, Eldorado: Everything the Nazis Hate
WINNER - David Petersen, Lift
Marc Saltarelli, Studio One Forever
Chelsea McMullan, Swan Song
This year's awarding committee comprised Sylviane Gold, Gary Chryst, Robert LaFosse, Wendy Perron, and Lee Roy Reams. The Broadway Nominating Committee comprised 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, while the Film Nominating Committee featured Jonathan C. Herzog, Steven Caras, Wilhelmina Frankfurt, Mary Beth O’Connor, and Andy Sandberg.
Visit ChitaRiveraAwards.com.
