David Neumann Will Receive Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics Choice Award at the Chita Rivera Awards

David Neumann, who choreographed this season’s Swept Away on Broadway, and won the Chita Rivera Award and was nominated for the Tony Award for choreographing Hadestown, will receive the Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics Choice Award at the 2025 Chita Rivera Awards.

The Douglas and Ethel Watt Critics’ Choice Award is bestowed by the journalists of the Chita Rivera Awards Broadway judging committee, to recognize outstanding work that falls outside the framework of the original categories. It is named for the longtime Daily News theater critic Douglas Watt and his wife Ethel.

In a statement, the committee commented, “Adroitly deploying an ensemble in the cramped space of a realistic shipboard set, Mr. Neumann sent his crew flying on ropes and pounding into the deck, filling the stage with the sweaty physicality of 19th-century working sailors. In the show's climactic shipwreck scene, he created a remarkable tableau that filled the Longacre proscenium from top to bottom with breathtaking imagery. We are honored to give David this well deserved recognition.”

The 2025 Chita Rivera Awards will be presented on May 19 at 7:30pm at the NYU Skirball (566 LaGuardia Place off Washington Square Park), and produced by Joe Lanteri, Founder and Executive Director of the New York City Dance Alliance Foundation, Inc. in conjunction with Patricia Watt.

This year, the Chita Rivera Awards will be honoring Ben Vereen with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Best Choreography - Live Standings

Jerry Mitchell - BOOP! The Musical - 20% Jenny Arnold - Operation Mincemeat - 16% Christopher Gattelli, Lou Castro - Death Becomes Her - 14%

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