page_title: Chita Rivera
section_title: Later years
hierarchical_section_title: Chita Rivera / Later years
caption_attribution_description: English: Chita Rivera, at the White House in August 2009, looks at Barack Obama prior to receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom
context_page_description: Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero, better known as Chita Rivera, is an American actress, dancer and singer best known for her roles in musical theatre. She is the first Hispanic woman and the first Latino American to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009.
context_section_description: She appeared as Fastrada in a filmed-for-television version of the musical Pippin in 1981. In 1993, she received a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Aurora in the musical Kiss of the Spider Woman, written by Kander and Ebb.
  Rivera starred in the Goodman Theatre production of the musical The Visit (also by Kander and Ebb) as Claire Zachanassian in 2001. In 2008 she appeared in a revised production of the musical at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia, co-starring George Hearn.
  In 2003, Rivera returned to Broadway in the 2003 revival of Nine as Liliane La Fleur, and received her eighth career Tony Award nomination (Best Featured Actress in a Musical) and fourth Drama Desk Award nomination (Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical). She appeared with Antonio Banderas. She later appeared on the revival's cast album.
  On television, Rivera was a guest on The Judy Garland Show. She guest-starred along with Michele Lee in a February 2005 episode of Will & Grace, and in December of that year, Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life, a retrospective of her career, opened on Broadway. She received another Tony nomination for her self-portrayal. Though she was expected to reprise her role in a Signature Theatre staging of The Visit in autumn of 2007, that was later postponed to the following season. Instead, she performed at New York's Feinstein's at the Regency supper club in New York for two weeks. Rivera performed in a staged concert of The Visit as a benefit at the Ambassador Theatre on November 30, 2011.
  Rivera made a cameo appearance in the 2002 movie version of Chicago. Rivera guest-starred on Disney Channel's Johnny and the Sprites as Queen of All Magical Beings.  The episode debuted on March 15, 2008. In August 2009, US President Barack Obama awarded Rivera with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
  In the 1960s Rivera had recorded two albums, Chita Rivera: Get Me To The Church On Time and And Now I Sing. These early 1960s albums would be reissued on CD by Stage Door Records in February 2013. In November 2008, Rivera released her third solo album, And Now I Swing.
  In 2012, Rivera played "Princess Puffer" in the new Broadway revival of The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Studio 54.
  She was the Grand marshal of the Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York City on June 9, 2013.
  Rivera returned to Broadway in The Visit, the final musical written by John Kander, Fred Ebb and Terrence McNally. The musical opened at the Lyceum Theatre on March 26, 2015, and closed on June 14, 2015. Co-starring Roger Rees, the production was directed by John Doyle and choreographed by Graciela Daniele. Rivera received praise for her performance, and was nominated for a Tony Award, Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical.
  She is a Roman Catholic.
caption: Rivera with President Barack Obama prior to receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, August 2009
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