Updates From Tristan - March 7, 2016

Tristan is in the final three weeks of the Good Mourning, Mrs. Brown Australia/New Zealand Tour and took time today for our questions.  Continue reading to find out the latest news and updates.  As always, Tristan's humor, candor, and humility are truly refreshing. 

******************

We have seen the occasional photo of you with the cast and crew of Good Mourning, Mrs. Brown. Are you still doing the tour as it winds down and have there been any especially memorable moments?

Yeah, I’m still doing the tour. Only three weeks to go now - one in Perth and two in New Zealand.  It’s been real fun and I will miss it when it finishes, but it’s been great. Everything is memorable about it. The cast are great.  People have really taken me on board and looked after me there.  Every show is great and every night Agnes makes me laugh on stage so the struggle is getting through the lines without laughing....it’s that way for everyone in every scene though.
 
We did a survey on the website and had close to a thousand responses about which of your dances with your celebrity partners were our favorites.  Here are the results.  Any surprises on this list? Your supporters seem to remember every dance and could talk about them all day.

1.  Cha Cha with Gladys - "Best Of My Love"
2.  Contemporary with Dorothy - "Tiny Dancer"
3.  Foxtrot with Nancy - "Always Look On the Bright Side of Life"
4.  Waltz with Valerie in Finale - "What A Wonderful World"
5.  Charleston with Jamelia - "Straight Up"
6.  Samba with Gladys - "Fiebre"
7.  Quickstep with Jamelia - "I'm A Believer"
8.  Foxtrot with Valerie - "Some Kind of Wonderful"
9.  Foxtrot with Gladys - "Cupid"
10. Tango with Nancy - "The Naughty of Shady Lane"
11. Waltz with Jenny - "Natural Woman" 
 
That’s nice.  You forget what numbers you have done before and that was a nice surprise.  I liked the dance with Gladys the best probably as well.  That was one of my favourite seasons.  I think with Valerie's “Carry On” sticks out, and I knew in my head after that dance that I wasn't going to come back. 
 
You have answered a lot of our questions about learning and education in the past and here is an interesting one we recently received.  If you could be a teacher of anything besides dance, what would it be?

There isn't anything else I’d be able to teach - haha - but I love History.  Maybe PE.  I think that’s really important for kids to do in school for social skills and mainly for health reasons.
 
We haven’t heard much about little Pike lately? Is he still around stirring up trouble?

Pikey is great.  He is back in Ireland with my folks having the time of his life.  He loves it there, and we are travelling so much that it’s not right to be dragging him around everywhere.  He is very happy and probably too comfortable with his life in Ireland – haha.
 
Being a professional dancer definitely has its ups and downs.  Generally speaking, what do you see as the highs and lows of your job? Does the uncertainty of the profession ever bother you or do you just accept it for what it is?
 
Yeah, there is an uncertainty with the profession but only if you limit yourself to the things you want to do. There is uncertainty whether you are gonna be on a tv show or not, but you can still be a dancer and you can still do shows and you can still take class and earn a living from it.  The tv shows aren't the be all and end all of everything.  You probably just earn more that way.  I accept the way it is because the majority of people who do it get it.  Take Maks and Val.  They capitalize on the fact that they are on the show to make their own show or shows and make opportunities for their crowd to be able to work all year round.  You just have to decide what you want to do.  For me in a way it’s the same as everything else.  Do you want to be a dancer or you want to be a famous dancer??! Do you want to be an actor or you want to be a famous actor?! Do you actually want to do something or do you want people to know what you do?  It’s all perspective.  I enjoy being a dancer, but it’s only a part of my life.  It’s not everything. 
 
Have you ever wondered what goes on in the website forum to get us to 1 million views? (Or do you assume it is insanity – or lunacy – at work)
 
People are always posting everything from the website to me, so I see a lot of things and the pictures are always a nice surprise but I’ve no doubt missed the bulk of all the work you guys put in and the banter between you all that no doubt is what has people coming back more than what I’m doing.
 
Also, there have been a lot of questions about Ballroom With A Twist and Dancing With the Movies here in the states.  Do you currently have any plans to be in any of those shows later this spring and summer?

I have heard great things about the new show and maybe later in the year I may do some but right now I have a lot of stuff going on that needs my undivided attention, and I’m putting all thoughts of what’s next out of my head for a bit.  I’m very happy where I am working at the minute and very content.
 
The question everyone is asking - Do you know if you will be coming back to Strictly?
 
No, I won't be going back.  I think over the time I have been there I have realized more and more that it is not for me.  I think the show needs someone a lot different to me on the show to get what they want, and I need something a lot different to make me happy and get what I want out of it.  I think there will be a lot of changes on the show, and I have enjoyed it for the most part but right now I just need a break from it all. This kind of goes hand in hand with the other question in that you can do whatever it is you want to do but when you have to start doing things you don't, then you have to decide if it’s for you or not.  You can be a dancer or you can be a dancer on a tv show and with that comes a whole other bag.  It can be fun, but I’d sooner leave it as it is then spend all my time complaining about it.