Janette Manrara might be better known for her moves than her voice, given her status as one of the pros on Strictly Come Dancing, but this year sees her making the most of her musical theatre training. Janette is taking to the stage as Roxie Hart, one of the iconic leading ladies of Chicago, in a production which tours to the region this month and then returns in June. What’s On spoke to her about her journey into the spotlight, finding a work/life balance, and All That Jazz...

Janette Manrara might be best known in the UK as a professional dancer on Strictly, appearing on the BBC series between 2013 and 2020, but now she’s taking to the stage in a brand-new way. This year sees Janette making her professional musical theatre debut, playing the iconic character of Roxie Hart in a touring production of Chicago, which visits the Midlands this month.

“It’s my musical theatre debut at 41,” she says, “and I don’t think I could have had a better role to kickstart this chapter of my career! I’ve been a fan of Chicago for many, many years. I’ve seen it many times and I’ve seen the film loads, as I’m sure many of us have. Roxie is such a fun leading lady to play because she’s not your ‘good girl next door’ type at all. There’s not many musicals where you get women misbehaving as leads, so it’s really fun to play her.”

The story centres around chorus girl Roxie, who is on trial for murder. With the help of flashy lawyer Billy Flynn, she steps into the media spotlight - vying for notoriety and celebrity with her fellow inmate Velma Kelly.

“I’m so in love with the cast - they’re all so talented. Djalenga Scott - DJ we call her for short - she plays my Velma. She’s so talented, so good. I watch her from the side as she’s doing her thing, and I’m just in awe of her. That’s the same for the whole cast. Velma’s a big part of the show for me; she’s my partner in crime - quite literally.”

With her husband and one-time Strictly co-star, Aljaž Škorjanec, Janette has a daughter, Lyra, born in 2023 - so the three of them will be hoping to find that ever-elusive work/life balance as she tours to 21 UK venues.

“That is the big puzzle of life, which I don’t think there will ever be an answer for. I have to give massive, massive credit to Aljaž because, as my husband, as a man, and as my best friend, he’s really going to hold the fort at home with Lyra. I’m just so grateful that we have that kind of relationship, where we really co-parent and we really are a team. I’m going to run home on my days off, straight after the show, so I can wake up in the morning at home as much as I possibly can. Aljaž and Lyra are going to come and visit me and stay with me some weeks. I said to him, I can’t be more than a week away from her, so he’s going to help make sure I spend as much time as I can with him and her.

“Having a partner like him by my side makes that work/life balance easier to accomplish. It’s never easy. I had a big moment a few days ago, just thinking ‘Wow, I’ll be putting Lyra to bed myself just once a week…’ If you think about it, that’s not a lot of nights that I get to put my own daughter to bed.”

Janette is, of course, best known for her dancing, but some fans might be surprised to learn that her love of dance grew from a beginning in musical theatre. She began formal dance training at the age of 19, finding it was the skill at which she truly excelled. Returning to her roots as a ‘triple threat’ musical performer (dancing, singing and acting) is proving to be quite a journey down memory lane…

“I’ve always enjoyed musicals, and I started in musical theatre. I’ve done A Chorus Line, I’ve done Cats, I’ve done West Side Story, I’ve even done Chicago - but as a kid, as a teenager. Now, to be in my 40s doing my first-ever musical - it’s such a full-circle moment for my career. I’m not Jeanette on stage, I’m Roxie. And the people around me - it’s not Kevin Clifton, it’s Billy Flynn; it’s not DJ, it’s Velma; it’s not Brenda Edwards, it’s Mama. To be in a room where all the people are going with you creatively, and not being afraid to be those characters, is so fascinating. You kind of feel like a kid again. You’re playing ‘imagination’ - it’s really cool to go back into that space, as an adult.”

Preparing to play the role of Roxie has involved Janette looking back on previous renditions of the show - as well as looking forward to her own interpretation.

“I’ve been doing a lot of work with my acting coach - he's been incredible. We’ve dissected the script a hundred times and sat and watched different women play her throughout the years, finding inspiration from all the different, epic women who have been Roxie in the past, taking bits from each of them, and finding my own version of her. I think that’s what's nice about Roxie Hart: you can play her your own way.”

And while Janette is truly in her element when dancing, the sheer physicality of singing, acting and dancing in musical numbers has brought with it a few surprises.

“I have to sing on a ladder, in Funny Honey, and the ladder is quite high. I have to climb the ladder, swing around the ladder, up and down the ladder, on music, on time; so that’s interesting - and different!”

Outside of the performance world, last autumn saw the publication of Janette’s first book: Tiny Dancer, Big World. The book is subtitled ‘How to find fulfillment from the inside out’ and provides an insight into Janette’s motivational and inspirational life lessons.

“I always really liked writing - but I didn’t want to write a book unless I had something really meaningful to say. I was nearing the cusp of turning 40, I had just become a mother with Lyra, and I had done my wellbeing certification. I learned so much about the human mind and how it works, and I found that a lot of the tools that I learned really changed my approach to a lot of things in life - made me a calmer person.

“A really special aspect of the book is that I wrote it with my sister. My sister’s a writer - she kind of stepped in, and I would say that she zhuzhed it up a bit and gave it a twist here and there. I wrote the whole book myself, which I’m really proud of - not a lot of people do that. That process was gruesome, but so therapeutic at the same time. Lesly, my sister, helped make it that little bit more special and that little bit more beautiful to read.”

And while she’s got plenty on her plate for now, Janette hasn’t closed the door on writing.

“I have a lot of life and career left to do before I can do the autobiography! But this book felt really nice because it’s not about me. You learn about me in the book, but it’s not about me; it’s about the reader finding what works for them… I really hope it helps people.”

With her musical theatre career now (high) kicking off in fine style, what’s next for Janette? After all, it’s quite unusual for a performer to make their debut playing one of theatre’s great leading ladies...

“I said to my agent, if I’m starting at Roxie Hart, where do I go? Roxie is so iconic. I really enjoy the whole musical theatre process: learning a script; working on the singing; dancing, obviously, which is a huge passion of mine anyway. We’ll see! There are so many great musicals out there - and there are also some really amazing new productions that I would love to go and watch, just to see which character pops out and makes me feel like I’d love to play it. There’s so much new stuff happening in the world of musical theatre. Watch this space!”

Chicago shows at The Alexandra, Birmingham, from Monday 14 to Saturday 19 April, and the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre from Monday 23 to Saturday 28 June

By Jessica Clixby