Tristan MacManus Interview (67)—April 18, 2018

We hear that you will be back at Trundle’s ABBA Festival in May along with Alana Patience.  Will you be dancing again this year? 
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Yes, I’ll be back in Trundle this year with Alana Patience for the ABBA festival.  It was good craic in the end last year and looking forward to another positive experience this year.  We also have an Elvis cruise coming up in Australia so that as well should be fun.  These themed weekends and shows are always great because it’s everyone coming together to celebrate people who they love and appreciate and you can just swoop in and do a little gig, and no matter how good it was or bad it was it was just another element to the festivities. The whole thing is great.  We stayed in an old bank that was converted into a house, so the bedroom is actually in the old vault which is really cool. 
 
It’s been a long time since you were on Strictly Come Dancing and even longer since Dancing With the Stars, but what are some of the special memories from those experiences?
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Yeah, it’s been a while now since being on them but I still have some great memories.  I don’t miss being on the show and I still have grievances about the way some things went, but at the same time when I reflect back I can see some things I would have done differently.  Maybe that’s just since I’ve changed since becoming a dad.  Also, maybe since now I’m producing I can see some things in a different light.  One thing I know I did right on the show is how I treated people and that would not have changed for a second, and I never went against anyone for my own benefit.  I never would have changed that.  I more than likely would have focused more and treated my body better and not gotten as riled up with what was going on around me, but on the whole I’m glad I left when I did for the reasons that I did.  I still keep in touch with the majority of my partners.  I’ll always remember my first show as a troupe member.  I remember the arguments with Nancy but also the great chats we had.  I still remember how happy and excited Gladys was after the first dance we did.  I’ll never forget that smile.  I remember how emotional Valerie Harper made me feel and how proud I was of that experience.  I remember first being told I wouldn’t be used and then me saying I won’t be back.  I had good times/bad times with Jamelia.  I looked after her but maybe not in the interests of the show, and then making a lifelong friend in Jenny who I now work with full time.  I have great memories of both experiences and am glad I was lucky enough to live them and wish nothing but the best for those still involved.
 
Conversely, did you ever have one of those days on either show when everything seemed to go wrong?

Hahaha—oh yeah 100%. There were more than a few of those ones, but again different times and different attitudes change a lot of things.  When I went to LA first it was all mental to me and I was very loose and wild at the time so that in itself helped and hindered.  I was always conscious of the bubble of the tv world and sometimes I made more of that then I should have.  I would exclude myself from things I probably should have gone to and then went to things that I shouldn’t have—things like that!! I would never go to events which would have helped me with the show and when it came to getting songs/themes etc. I wasn’t into,  I’d just reject it instead of trying to resolve it.  There was a time when I wanted full control over everything, and when I felt like I couldn’t then I’d shut down and just 'do my job’.  That’s why everything turned sour for me.  I felt like it was portraying that you had to be good or nobody was interested.  Whether I was right or wrong at the time, I felt like only 'the good' dancers were getting the breaks and the good ideas—haha.  I can’t help but get annoyed by how somebody like DL Hughley, Michael Bolton or Martina Navratilova felt.  It wasn’t nice viewing.  I just thought there was a nicer way to thank these guys for being part of the show as opposed to exploiting the gulf in abilities.  Some days though, yeah, you just wanna throw some fingers up, crack some cans, and keep on truckin'—hahaaha.
 
You traveled a lot with Burn the Floor and performed in many other shows including Dirty Dancing The Musical, Ballroom With A Twist, Dance To the Movies, etc.  What are some standout moments?

The stand out moments are always the same.  It’s the crowds!  You could be anywhere in the world but seeing smiles before during and after shows though trumps everything, although Boston is always special to me.  I absolutely love it!!  Yeah, the crowds and—luckily enough for me—the people I’ve been lucky enough to work with on a lot of these shows—Jaymz Tuaileva, Brent, Sasha, Iveta, Magda Jon, CJ, Tony—all these guys make the shows what they are, and those experiences stay with you for always.  Magda, by the way, has it all.  How she hasn’t been on these shows yet is beyond me.  She should be on DWTS no doubt for her humor alone and ability.  I loved Dirty Dancing also.  I’d love to go back and do that again, especially with Swayze being a real idol of mine, but I really loved that show and it’s a shame it wasn’t longer.

You’ll be back in the states for Dance To the Movies in May.  Will you have a chance to visit old friends or see familiar places during your visit?  Do you have plans to teach or perform elsewhere when you’re here?

I’m not too sure about plans for America just yet.  I’ll try to do as much as I can while there, but having travelled so much this year I would like to be able to get home and put my feet up for a little.  I’m very fortunate with what I get to do but what’s the point if you don’t get to put your kids to bed every night and live wherever you have been lucky enough to work? I’ll catch up with friends for sure.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get to Sasha and Emma’s wedding which killed me, but I will definitely see those guys.  America may be a quick trip this time as we can’t keep taking Echo from kindy, and I won’t keep travelling away without them.
 
The last time we spoke you mentioned that you were still involved with Mrs. Brown’s Boys working on the production end.  What type of work did you do and will you be working/performing in future productions?

Yes, I am working full time now for Mrs. Brown’s Boys as a producer so that is fun and it’s a great way for me to learn the industry from the other side.  We work on the tv side and theatre/touring side so I would be responsible for setting up and running of the shows.  We have a great team here who have all the experience and I am sponging all the info I can.  While we are on the road, the production show we are working on determines whether I have an onstage role.  If I’m not onstage or on screen, I will be on the set floor or in the production office.  It’s all very interesting stuff and again it lets me learn, and I can see if there is a way to see if the things that irked me before can be done in a nicer way.....haha.  I enjoy it and with Tahyna being a writer and director it helps.  She teaches me things too and eventually we plan to work together where she can be the boss..........just like at home and at least I can get paid for being told what to do instead of doing it for free every day of my life.  Hahahaha.
 
Finally, a fun “what’s the first thing you think of” exercise.  In other words, just give your first response to the following:

Food you can’t stand
Shellfish/cold fish
 
Food you love
Buffalo wings—hahaha
 
Television show that makes you crazy
Family Feud
 
Worst movie ever
Stop remaking films!
 
The thing you dislike most about flying
Leaving the girls
 
An incredible professional dancer
Swayze
 
An incredible actor
Daniel Day-Lewis
 
Current favorite musician
Picture This

Funniest thing Echo has done/Most adorable thing Echo has done
Everything.  She is hilarious but changes the subject if you ask her about her dirty nappy.
She kicks you in the face in her sleep, sleeps laying across my face and as soon as she wakes up she pulls my eyelids open and says, “Wakey wakey, I LOVE YOU DADA.”