He appeared in the original cast of several Broadway shows, including playing Grantaire and Inspector Javert in Les Misérables, Valentin in Kiss of the Spider Woman, Eddie Fuseli in Golden Boy, Dante Keyes in Marie Christine, and the Killer in The News.

Early in his career, he appeared in 12 community theatre productions, including three at Sunset Playhouse, directed by Alan Furlan and Mary H.

His former acting teachers include: Tony Greco, Estelle Parsons, Harvey Keitel, Barbara Bain, Martin Landau as well as Michael Howard, Terry Schreiber and Mary H. Strong.

[3] Mr. Crivello has also moonlighted as a ring announcer & commentator for ESPN2's Kickboxing Championships, and owns stock with the NFL's Green Bay Packers.

He was an original Broadway cast member of Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg's Les Misérables for directors Trevor Nunn and John Caird and producer Cameron Mackintosh, first as Grantaire, and ten months later taking over the leading role of Javert.

He starred on Broadway as "Valentin" in the Kander and Ebb Terrence McNally musical Kiss of the Spider Woman in 1993 directed by the incomparable Harold Prince.

In 1999, he starred in Michael John LaChiusa's Marie Christine directed by Graciela Daniele at The Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theatre on Broadway.

In August 2005, he appeared at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California in a workshop production of Zhivago, a musicalisation of the Boris Pasternak novel by Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon, and directed by Des McAnuff.

In 2006, he was cast by director Hal Prince as one of two actors rotating in the title role in the Las Vegas production of The Phantom of the Opera.

He appeared in the Lincoln Centre 75th Anniversary revival of Clifford Odets' Golden Boy at the Belasco Theatre in New York City, produced by Lincoln Centre Theatre in 2012–2013, acting alongside Tony Shalhoub, Seth Numrich, and Yvonne Strahovski, Michael Aronov and directed by Bartlett Sher.

In 2014, he appeared in the Kevin Murphy / Laurence O'Keefe Heathers Off-Broadway in New York City at New World Stages, and directed by Andy Fickman.

Crivello received critical praise for his work in the show and won the 2017 Wisconsin Footlights Award for Outstanding Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play.

[6][7] In 2019, Crivello portrayed "The Old Man" Santiago in Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, adapted for the stage by A. E. Hotchner and Tim Hotchner, presented at the Pittsburgh Playhouse on the campus of Point Park University, directed by Ronald Allan-Lindblom and produced by RWS Entertainment Group of New York City/Long Island City, receiving critical praise for his work.

[8][9] In July 2019, Crivello made his Hollywood Bowl debut as "The Mysterious Man" in Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods directed by Robert Longbottom.

In 1995 he starred in the Roger Corman produced Dillinger and Capone, opposite Martin Sheen and Monster Mash: The Movie.

Crivello appeared as British film director David Lean in director/producer Ryan Murphy's 2017 FOX miniseries Feud opposite Jessica Lange.

Additionally in 2024, he starred as Police Chief D. W. Johnson in the independent film The Omro Heist and also served as executive producer.