Dick Van Dyke to Join Chita Rivera in The Dancer's Life for Four Performances

Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life will welcome a special guest star for some upcoming performances. Tony winner Dick Van Dyke will join the cast for four performances only--January 24 through January 26.

Van Dyke starred on Broadway with Rivera in Bye Bye Birdie and won a Tony Award for his performance. Rivera made an appearance on The New Dick Van Dyke Show.

A show business legend, Van Dyke has appeared on Broadway three times. In addition to Bye Bye Birdie, he starred in The Girls Against the Boys for which he won a Theatre World Award and the 1980 revival of The Music Man. After Carl Reiner saw Van Dyke in Bye Bye Birdie, he cast Van Dyke in a developing television show called Head of the Family. The show's name was changed to The Dick Van Dyke Show, and Van Dyke ended up winning three consecutive Emmy Awards for it. During the course of The Dick Van Dyke Show, which ran from 1961-1966, its star appeared in several major motion pictures, including the film version of Bye Bye Birdie and Mary Poppins. After the television show went off the air, Van Dyke continued his big screen career. He then returned to the small screen in the early 1970s in The New Dick Van Dyke Show. He later hosted a short-lived variety series, Van Dyke and Company, became a regular on The Carol Burnett Show, headlined the failed sitcom Van Dyke and starred in the succesful Diagnosis Murder.

Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life officially opened on Broadway at the Schoenfeld Theatre on December 11. While most shows do not change that much after opening night, this one is not only getting a guest star for a few days, it's also adding a special bonus treat for audience members. The "America" number from West Side Story, with the original Jerome Robbins choreography, is being added to the first act on January 14. It will be a permanent addition to the show.