Strictly Come Dancing Janette Manrara addresses 'missing star' at Liverpool show as replacement confirmed
Strictly Come Dancing's Janette Manrara addressed a missing contestant from the live tour which is currently at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool tonight (January 28) and tomorrow (January 29). The show is hosted by Janette, and features all four judges: Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Craig Revel Horwood.
However, as the celebrities walked down the steps onto the dancefloor with their professional dance partners, Janette announced that one dancer was missing from the line-up.
She said: "As you can see we're missing Vito, he is unable to dance tonight so Nikita has very kindly stepped in." Nikita Kuzmin is dancing with actress Sarah Hadland on tour, as Vito recently revealed he is recovering from an injury.
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Vito and Sarah formed an incredible partnership on the latest season of the BBC contest as they made it all the way to final. They narrowly missed out on the glitterball when Chris McCausland lifted the prize with Dianne Buswell.
In an interview on This Morning, the 32-year old dancer said: "I have got a little injury, it's like a dancer thing you know". He added: "We are kind of used to having this kind of pain."
Vito opened up about his physio treatment as he hopes to join the tour after "a little rest". Talking to Sarah, Vito said: "We're going to be back soon, but in the meantime you will have the best experience."
After missing out on the first few shows of the tour, Vito hoped he would be fully recovered in time to appear on stage tonight alongside Sarah. But it appears he is still suffering from the injury.
The Strictly Come Dancing live tour will stay in Liverpool for two nights, before moving to the Leeds First Direct Arena on Thursday January 30.