Chita Riveraa Broadway legend with more than seven decades of creditshas died at age 91 after a short illness, People Magazine reported.
"It is with immense personal sorrow that I announce the death of the beloved Broadway icon Chita Rivera. My dear friend of over 40 years was 91," friend Merle Frimark said in a statement.
"A memorial service will be announced in due course," the statement also read, asking for any donations in her memory to be made to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
Rivera received the prestigious Kennedy Center Honor, presented by the president of the United States, in 2002; and won two Tony Awards as Best Leading Actress in a Musical, for The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman. In 2018, she also received a Lifetime Achievement Tony.
She also appeared in many film and television projects, including Sweet Charity (1969), The Carol Burnett Show (1971), Will & Grace (2005) and 2021's Tick, Tick... Boom!
Rivera was a staunch ally of the LGBTQ+ community. In 2021, she and Audra McDonald stopped by Disney's Grand Californian Hotel for two intimate back-to-back engagements at the annual Gay Days Anaheim, also known as Disneyland Gay Days, per The Los Angeles Blade.
The New York City Gay Men's Chorus was scheduled to present Rivera with the inaugural ICON Award at its 24th annual gala, "Harmony," on Feb. 19, 2024, Broadway World noted. It is not yet known how the presentation will be handled in light of Rivera's passing.
Andrew Davis