Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life to Debut at the Ahmanson in Los Angeles

Chita Rivera's Broadway-bound autobiographical musical Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life will replace the scheduled National Theatre production of Anything Goes in the Ahmanson Theatre lineup in Los Angeles. Anything Goes was canceled due to financial reasons.

Rivera, currently performing at Feinstein's at the Regency, has garnered eight Tony Award nominations and won twice for The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman. Her show will not be in the traditional one-woman format, instead it will feature an ensemble of 10 performers. Written by Terrence McNally and directed and choreographed by Graciela Daniele, the piece promises to celebrate not only Rivera, but also the great choreographers of the Broadway stage, including Bob Fosse, Jerome Robbins, Gower Champion and Michael Kidd.

Ahmanson will offer the world premiere of Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life from June 17 through August 7, 2005. The show was previously scheduled to have its world premiere at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts from June 7 through June 19. That conflicts with this mounting, but it has yet to be officially canceled. Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life is expected to also stop in Boston, Chicago and Washington D.C. before it heads to Broadway.