Huntington Presents Three Time Tony Winner Chita Rivera

Three-time Tony Award-winning actress, singer, and dancer Chita Rivera performs for one night only alongside music director and host Seth Rudetsky on Saturday, October 13 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA at 5pm and 8pm. Produced by Mark Cortale Productions, the performance is the first in the new "Broadway @ the Huntington" series.

The show is an unscripted mixture of music and intimate, behind-the-scenes tales of Ms. Rivera's career, prompted by questions from Mr. Rudetsky, who hosts "Seth's Big Fat Broadway" and "Seth Speaks" on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio's "On Broadway" channel.

Ms. Rivera will perform hits from her vast musical theatre repertoire, which includes originating the roles of Anita in West Side Story (prem. 1957), Rose Grant in Bye Bye Birdie (1960), and Velma Kelly in Chicago (1975). She also has appeared in Broadway productions of Can-Can (1953), Bajour (1964), Merlin (1983), Jerry's Girls (1985), and Nine (2003), as well as her autobiographical show Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life (2005). Ms. Rivera earned 10 Tony Award nominations and won Tony Awards for her performances in The Rink (prem. 1984) and Kiss of the Spider Woman (1993). She most recently originated the role of Claire and was nominated for a Tony Award in the Kander-Ebb-McNally musical The Visit, which premiered on Broadway in 2015. Ms. Rivera received the Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 2018 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2009.

In addition to his popular shows on Sirius/XM, Mr. Rudetsky is an author of two novels (My Awesome/Awful Popularity Plan and the sequel The Rise and Fall of a Theater Geek) and three volumes of Seth's Broadway Diary. He co-wrote and co-starred in the musical-comedy spoof Disaster! on Broadway and in London's West End. He co-produced an all-star recording of "What the World Needs Now," which went to #1 on iTunes and raised $100,000 for victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting.

"I'm delighted to welcome Chita Rivera, a true Broadway legend, to the Huntington," says Artistic Director Peter DuBois. "Her career spans the modern Broadway history, and she has created so many iconic roles in the musical canon. This show is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to hear theatre history from a woman who, quite literally, helped make it."

Single tickets starting at $25, and FlexPasses are available:

Online at huntingtontheatre.org

By phone at 617 266 0800

In person at the Huntington Avenue Theatre Box Office, 264 Huntington Ave. and the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA Box Office, 527 Tremont St.

Select discounts apply: $5 off: seniors (65+); $30 "35 Below" tickets for patrons 35 years old and younger (valid ID required); $20 student and military tickets (valid ID required)

Limited number of VIP tickets for $200 include an intimate post-performance reception with the artists Chita Rivera and Seth Rudetsky

The Huntington Theatre Company is Boston's leading professional theatre and one of the region's premier cultural assets since its founding in 1982. Recipient of the 2013 Regional Theatre Tony Award, the Huntington brings together superb local and national talent and produces a mix of groundbreaking new works and classics made current to create award-winning productions. The Huntington runs nationally renowned programs in education and new play development and serves the local theatre community through its operation of the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. The Huntington has long been an anchor cultural institution of Huntington Avenue, the Avenue of the Arts, and will remain so on a permanent basis with plans to convert the Huntington Avenue Theatre into a first-rate, modern venue with expanded services to audiences, artists, and the community. Under the direction of Artistic Director Peter DuBois and Managing Director Michael Maso, the Huntington cultivates, celebrates, and champions theatre as an art form. For more information, visit huntingtontheatre.org.

Mark Cortale (Producer) is currently co-producing the new musical Midnight at the Never Get by Mark Sonnenblick, opening at the York Theatre this fall. He produced Deconstructing Patti on Broadway last September at the Nederlander Theatre with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, starring Patti LuPone and Seth Rudetsky. He created the Broadway @ concert series in 2011 at The Art House in Provincetown where he serves as Producing Artistic Director. The series, featuring creative partner Seth Rudetsky as music director and host, had its eighth season this past summer and guest artists over the years have included Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Sutton Foster, Megan Mulllally, Christine Ebersole, and Jessie Mueller. The Broadway @ series also premiered in 2013 in New Orleans, in Australia (Sydney & Melbourne) with Megan Mullally, and in London's West End with Patti LuPone at the Leicester Square Theatre. The series has since travelled to cities that include Chicago @ The Steppenwolf, Beverly Hills @ The Wallis, Fort Lauderdale @ The Parker Playhouse, San Francisco @ The Herbst Theater and Scottsdale @ Scottsdale Center for the Arts. In the 2018-2019 season, the series will launch in NYC at The Town Hall with Audra McDonald, Kelli O'Hara, and Jeremy Jordan. Mr. Cortale produced the feature film Varla Jean and the Mushroomheads and also produces the singing string quartet Well-Strung, which he co-founded. Info at markcortalepresents.com.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Broski

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