Janette Manrara shares advice from Strictly stars for Chicago UK tour

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The pro dancer and It Takes Two host zoned in on one reaction in particular during an exclusive chat with RadioTimes.com that left her grinning.

"Joanne Clifton!" she laughed, "She’s just such a cheerleader. When I got announced for it, she literally was one of the first people to message me and she was screaming.

Joanne Clifton and Janette Manrara smiling together — Joanne Clifton and Janette Manrara. Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

"She sent me a voice note saying, 'You’re going to get the buzz, you’re going to get so inspired by it all,' she just felt so happy for me."

Manrara added: "Her advice was really just to embrace it, to dive into the world of musical theatre, because it’s just so different to Strictly."

The dancer also said that Joanne's brother Kevin Clifton was a huge help, having already been cast in the touring production alongside her as Billy Flynn. "He was offering help, offering to run lines, he was just so excited.

"Kevin and I have worked together for so many years – we’ve been friends for 15 years now – so to go from Strictly together to Chicago was so exciting because he’s such a good mate."

Clifton's tenure on the show as the sleazy Chicago lawyer has now ended and the role has been picked up by Dan Burton and Darren Day.

However, Manrara reiterated that she was learning so much from the entire tour cast.

Janette Manrara press shot for Chicago showing her in a black dress — Janette Manrara. Matt Crockett

"I'm learning how my vocal chords work, how I need to keep it going for eight shows a week, and I think every night I get a little better."

She said appearing in Chicago had been a lifelong dream, and playing Roxie especially was a treat for her acting and singing skills.

"My Roxie, although she's very naïve and very childlike in the way she dreams of Vaudeville, she’s a fighter and a survivor, and you need to be a little bit afraid of her. She’s so complex, and that’s what makes her such a wonderful role.

"What you've also got to remember is that this is a dangerous show. It’s about murder and alcohol and nightclubs, and it’s not a good place, and you’re dealing with murderous women – so it should never feel content.

"Every single night you're going to deliver a line differently, and you always need to be finding the buzz, finding the danger, which I love."

Alongside her acting and singing progress, we of course couldn't resist asking about the dancing, but Manrara's answer may surprise you.

"I can’t really go to my normal Strictly Come Dancing style," she said: "The show, and the Hot Honey Rag in particular, has this iconic movement and iconic choreography which hasn’t been changed since the day they made it.

"It's not like it’s physically demanding, but it’s demanding and pressure in another way – it has to be exactly as it was 50 years ago, every finger! And Djalenga Scott (who plays Velma) and I have to be exactly the same."

But of course, as she says, that's all part of the fun.

Buy Chicago UK tour tickets at ATG Tickets