Jan. 30 (UPI) — Three-time Tony Award winner Chita Rivera died Tuesday. Rivera’s daughter, Lisa Mordente, confirmed to The Washington Post, Deadline and The Guardian via Rivera’s publicist.
Rivera was 91. The statement said she died peacefully in New York,
Rivera originated the roles of Anita in West Side Story and Velma in Chicago. The 2002 Chicago movie gave Rivera the role of Nickie.
But it was her roles in Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Rink that won Rivera Tony Awards. The Tonys gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018. She was nominated eight additional times.
Rivera last appeared on stage in a 2015 Broadway production of The Visit. Past stage credits include 1953’s Guys and Dolls, 1960’s Bye Bye Birdie and 2003’s Nine.
On film, Lin-Manuel Miranda cast Rivera among other Broadway legends for a sequence in tick, tick… BOOM!
