Winners of the 2025 Chita Rivera Awards were announced Sunday night at NYU Skirball, celebrating excellence in dance and choreography across Broadway, Off-Broadway and film. The awards, named for the legendary dancer and performer, honor outstanding contributions in choreography, featured dancers and ensembles from the 2024-2025 season.
The evening’s top Broadway honors went to “Buena Vista Social Club,” which won Outstanding Choreography for co-choreographers Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck, as well as Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show. The Outstanding Choreography in a Broadway Show category included seven nominees. Two winners were recognized as Outstanding Dancer in a Broadway Show category: Kevin Csolak for his performance in “Gypsy” and Robyn Hurder for her turn in “Smash.” As the category is gender-neutral, there are two winners chosen.
As previously announced, the ceremony also honored legendary stage and screen performer Ben Vereen with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Choreographer David Neumann received the Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics’ Choice Award for his work on “Swept Away.”
The Off-Broadway community was honored with a special recognition for Outstanding Choreography to Arturo Lyons and Omari Wiles for their work in “Cats: The Jellicle Ball.”
In film, Suki John won Outstanding Choreography in a Feature Film for “Sh’ma: A Story of Survival,” while Stephane Carrel took home Outstanding Direction of a Dance Documentary for “A Resilient Man.”
The Chita Rivera Awards are produced by Joe Lanteri, founder and executive director of the New York City Dance Alliance Foundation Inc., in collaboration with Patricia Watt. Proceeds from this year’s event will support the creation of the Chita Rivera Training Scholarship, a new initiative by the NYCDA Foundation to support the next generation of dancers.
The awards aim to preserve dance history, recognize excellence across genres, and promote high standards in dance education and performance.
For a list of the full 2025 nominations, click here.
