Tristan MacManus

Tristan MacManus
Born Tristan MacManus
23 July 1982
Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland
Occupation Dancer, choreographer
Years active 2011–present
Spouse(s) Tahyna Tozzi (m. 2014)

Tristan MacManus (born 23 July 1982) is an Irish dancer, best known for his professional appearances on Dancing with the Stars and Strictly Come Dancing.

Early life

MacManus began dancing in his hometown of Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland before moving on to compete around Europe, eventually winning numerous Juvenile, Junior and Amateur competitions. After appearing in an uncredited dance role in the 2004 movie Ella Enchanted, he performed in theatre productions throughout Ireland, most notably in the Cork City Opera House and The Gaiety Theatre, including Bryan Flynn's production of Oliver! and Aladdin, among others. Next, he joined the UK tour of Simply Ballroom and, after a successful tour in London and Las Vegas, went on to Australia and America where he toured as a featured dancer with Burn The Floor and Floorplay.

After numerous world tours and a year teaching Ballroom and Latin dancing in Boston, he returned to Europe to join the cast of Dirty Dancing as Dance Captain. He then went on to do a second stint in London's West End.[1]

MacManus is married to Australian actress Tahyna Tozzi. Their engagement was announced by Tahyna's sister, Cheyenne, on 19 April 2013 via Instagram,[2] and they married on 25 January 2014 at St John Fisher Roman Catholic Church, Cronulla.[3]

Television appearances

Dancing with the Stars

Season Partner Place
13 Nancy Grace 5th
14 Gladys Knight 8th
15 Pamela Anderson 13th
16 Dorothy Hamill 12th
17 Valerie Harper 10th

MacManus made his first appearance on the twelfth season of Dancing with the Stars as part of the "dance troupe," performing multiple dances during the results shows.

In the show's thirteenth season [4][5] he returned along with fellow troupe member, Peta Murgatroyd, to compete as a dance-pro partner to a celebrity contestant. His dancing partner was HLN hostess and former prosecutor Nancy Grace. They were eliminated on Week 8, just one week before the semifinals. They then received 5th place. For Season 14, MacManus was paired with Grammy Award winning singer Gladys Knight. The couple was eliminated on Week 6 after losing a "dance duel" to Disney Channel Star Roshon Fegan and his partner Chelsie Hightower. They finished in 8th place.

Also during Season 14 of Dancing with the Stars, MacManus was featured in week 8 as a partner in a trio with dance pro Mark Ballas and celebrity Kathrine Jenkins. They performed a Cha-cha-cha to Paul Anka's "She's a Lady" (popularized by Tom Jones), and received a score of "10" from judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli, and a "9" from Len Goodman.

For season 15, MacManus was partnered with actress and Season 10 contestant Pamela Anderson. They were the first to be eliminated on 25 September 2012.

For season 16, he was partnered with Olympic gold medalist Dorothy Hamill. They withdrew after Hamill suffered an ankle and spine injury that further prohibited her from competing. MacManus danced with Emma Slater and Chelsie Hightower during Len's week 5 Side by Side Challenge alongside Victor & Lindsay and Sean & Peta. He danced with Derek Hough and Kellie Pickler when they did a paso doble in the "trio round" which scored a 10 from Carrie Ann, a 7 from Len Goodman, and a 10 from Bruno Tonioli.

For season 17, he was paired with actress Valerie Harper. They were the third couple eliminated.

After his exit from Dancing with the Stars, it was revealed that MacManus would instead be joining Strictly Come Dancing as a professional dancer during the show's 12th series.[6]

In season 13, MacManus was paired with Nancy Grace.

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Cha-Cha-Cha / "Cry Baby" 5 5 6 Last to Be Called Safe
2 Quickstep / "It Don't Mean a Thing" 6 8 7 Safe
3 Waltz / "Moon River" 7 7 7 Safe
4 Paso Doble / "Flash's Theme" 7 7 7 Safe
5 Rumba / "True" 7 7 8 Safe
6 Foxtrot / "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life"
Group Broadway Dance/ "Big Spender" & "Money Money"
9
No
7
Scores
8
Given
Safe
7 Jive / "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
Team Tango / "Disturbia"
7
8
7
7
7
8
Bottom Two
8 Tango / "The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane"
Instant Jive / "Upside Down"
8
7
8
6
8
7
Eliminated

In season 14, MacManus was paired with R&B legend Gladys Knight.

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Cha-Cha-Cha / "Best of My Love" 8 7 8 No Elimination
2 Quickstep / "Sir Duke" 7 5 7 Safe
3 Foxtrot / "Cupid" 8 8 8 Safe
4 Tango / "Bohemian Rhapsody" 7 6 7 Safe
5 Samba / "Fiebre" 7 7 8 Safe
6 Rumba / "My Girl"
Motown Marathon / "Nowhere to Run"
Dance Duel Jive / "Don't Stop Me Now"
7
Awarded
Lost
7
3
This
7
Points
Event
Eliminated

For season 15, MacManus was paired with model, actress, and former contestant Pamela Anderson.

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Cha-Cha-Cha / "You Know I'm No Good" 5.5 5.5 6 Eliminated

For season 16, MacManus was paired with Olympic gold medal figure skater Dorothy Hamill.

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Contemporary / "Tiny Dancer" 7 7 7 No Elimination
2 Jive / "Chantilly Lace" 5 5 5 Withdrew

For season 17, MacManus was paired with award-winning actress Valerie Harper.

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Foxtrot / "Some Kind of Wonderful" 7 7 7 No Elimination
2 Paso Doble / "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" 6 6 7 Safe
3 Cha-cha-cha / "Grace Kelly" 6 5 5 Safe
4 Viennese Waltz / "Carry On" 6 6* 6 Eliminated

Strictly Come Dancing

Series Celebrity partner Place
12 Jennifer Gibney 14th

On 1 June 2014, shortly after his confirmed exit from Dancing with the Stars, it was revealed that MacManus would instead be joining the British edition of the show, Strictly Come Dancing as a professional dancer during the show's 12th series.[7] His celebrity partner for the series was Mrs Brown's Boys actress, Jennifer Gibney. They were at risk of being eliminated first when they ended up in the bottom two against Gregg Wallace and Aliona Vilani. All judges opted to save Gibney and MacManus leaving Wallace and Vilani the first couple to leave. However, it was Week 3 (Movie Week) when Gibney and MacManus were left in the bottom two once again against Blue popstar Simon Webbe and professional dancer Kristina Rihanoff. All 5 judges (Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli and special guest judge Donny Osmond) opted to save Webbe and Rihanoff leaving Gibney and MacManus in 14th place. Following their partnership, MacManus made a cameo appearance in the 2014 Christmas Special of Mrs Brown's Boys.


For Series 12, MacManus was paired with Mrs. Brown's Boys actress Jennifer Gibney.

Week No. Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Craig Revel Horwood Darcey Bussell Len Goodman Bruno Tonioli Donny Osmond Total
1 Jive – "Happy" 3 5 5 5 18 None
2 Waltz – "(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman" 4 5 5 5 19 Bottom two
3 Foxtrot – "Mamma Mia" 3 5 5 5 5 23 Eliminated

References

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Romeo & Chelsie Hightower
Dancing with the Stars (US) quarter-finalist
Season 13 (Autumn 2011 with Nancy Grace)
Succeeded by
Melissa Gilbert & Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Preceded by
Martina Navratilova & Tony Dovolani
Dancing with the Stars (US) last place
Season 15 (Autumn 2012 with Pamela Anderson)

Season 16 (Spring 2013 with Dorothy Hamill)

Succeeded by
Keyshawn Johnson & Sharna Burgess