Strictly’s Italian stallion Giovanni Pernice is bringing a taste of his homeland to theatres across the country.

The professional dancer is taking his new show, Made in Italy, on the road for a nationwide tour, including a number of Kent dates.

The show will be at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford on Wednesday, 15 February and at the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury on Thursday, February 16.

It will then return to the county for a further two shows at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley on Sunday, April 9 and the Assembly Hall Theatre in Tunbridge Wells on Sunday, May 7.

You can book tickets to all tour dates online here.

Giovanni, who raised the Strictly Come Dancing glitterball trophy with Rose Ayling-Ellis, the show’s first ever deaf contestant, in 2021, is hoping to show people his love for dance, as well as his journey to becoming a professional, in his new tour.

“Follow your dream, put the effort in, put the hours in, and do what will make you happy,” says the 32-year-old. “I see life as a marathon, not a sprint. I didn’t start dancing [thinking] one day, I want to be a professional dancer on Strictly. I just started, I loved dancing, and from there everything moves.

“It’s a marathon and everything will come – the right place, the right time, right people. But always, do what makes you happy.”

From growing up in Sicily to his time at dance school in Bologna, the live show is a love letter to Giovanni’s heritage.

The production features stunning choreography, costumes and music, all with a nod to his life in Italy, as well as Giovanni’s time on the BBC dance competition, which he joined as a professional dancer in 2015.

Giovanni will be performing again in Kent this year in a string of shows with fellow dancer and Strictly judge Anton Du Beke.

The duo are bringing Him and Me, their new show featuring a collaboration of dance, song and showbiz stories, to UK theatres this summer.

“For me, being busy is the most important thing,” he says. “I want to be productive with my days. But I guess it’s important as well to have some days when you can relax and chill.”

The pair have dates in Dartford and Bromley lined up for July.