Chita Rivera's 'Aurora' Joins Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' Broadway Legends Ornament Collection

Add the aura of Aurora from Kiss of the Spider Woman to your hearth and home with an iridescent homage to Chita Rivera and her Tony Award-winning performance as she becomes the 16th ornament in Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' Broadway Legends series.

The collectable ornament features Rivera in a luminous blue dress, adorned with a glittering and hauntingly beautiful spider web pattern that perfectly replicates the iconic costume from the show. The 6” memento is the perfect gift for any fan of the dazzling dames of Broadway. Order now at broadwaycares.org/chita.

“It's an absolute honor to see this sparkling tribute to Kiss of the Spider Woman land in the homes of theater lovers,” Rivera said. “And who doesn't need a little leading lady energy in their life?”

Rivera's Aurora joins a stellar cast of notable Broadway divas, which already includes Rivera as Anita from West Side Story in one of the series' earliest ornaments. The other legends featured in the collection are Julie Andrews, Carol Burnett, Carol Channing, Glenn Close, Harvey Fierstein, Angela Lansbury, Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Liza Minnelli, Bernadette Peters, Billy Porter, Barbra Streisand and Gwen Verdon.

Because of production delays, Rivera's ornament will not arrive until the new year. It should be delivered just in time, however, to help Rivera and her fans celebrate her joyous 91st birthday on January 23, 2024.

“I couldn't think of a more fitting tribute than all of us honoring Chita on her birthday with what will fast become a collector's item,” Broadway Cares Executive Director Tom Viola said.

A theatrical icon in every sense of the word, Rivera is one of the most-nominated performers in Tony Award history, having earned 10 nominations. She's received the Tony three times: twice for Best Actress in Musical for The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman and the 2018 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre. Rivera's illustrious career spans seven decades, with more than 20 Broadway credits including Bye Bye Birdie, Chicago, Merlin, Nine, The Visit and West Side Story. Rivera was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2009 and received the coveted Kennedy Center Honor in 2002.

Kiss of the Spider Woman features music by John Kander and Fred Ebb, with the book by Terrence McNally. Directed by Harold Prince, it opened on Broadway in 1993 and ran for 904 performances.

Make your holiday season even brighter with other Broadway Legends ornaments still available: Carol Burnett as Princess Winnifred in Once Upon a Mattress, Glenn Close as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, Harvey Fierstein as Edna Turnblad in Hairspray, Angela Lansbury as Mame Dennis in Mame and Audra McDonald as Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill. Add even more razzle dazzle to your holidays with other festive gifts from Broadway Cares, including holiday cards, unique theatrical presents and gift wrap.

To order the limited edition Chita Rivera ornament, visit broadwaycares.org/chita. For other holiday gifts, go to broadwaycares.org/store.

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the philanthropic heart of Broadway, is one of the nation's leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organizations. By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the American theater community, since 1988 Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has raised more than $300 million for essential services for people with HIV/AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is the major supporter of the social service programs at the Entertainment Community Fund (formerly The Actors Fund), including The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts, the HIV/AIDS Initiative and the Phyllis Newman Women's Health Initiative. Broadway Cares also awards annual grants to more than 450 AIDS and family service organizations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., providing lifesaving medication, healthy meals, counseling and emergency assistance.