To live a normal it’s kept me sane’

was happily performing casino concerts and touring with her band while simultaneously bringing up her two children when the call came through for

Did it take much persuasion for her to take on the role – only her third musical after and

“The role came at the right time,” she reveals in her Scots-burred American accent.

“If it had come a year earlier I would have said no. For me to take on a role that would last for 15 months was a big leap.

“My daughter turned 21 when we started rehearsals and my son is working, so I was suffering from empty nest syndrome.

“I was already stepping up a bit more but I wasn’t expecting to work this much. I couldn’t say no.”

As single mother, Easton had chosen to live as normal a home life as possible and to provide her children with all the maternal love and support she could while they were growing up.

But now that they have reached adulthood, she is back in the frame. into showbusiness, if only to restore some purpose to her life. The move to America in 1981 was undoubtedly good for her career. American audiences have always appreciated her and her duets with Kenny Rogers and her creative association with Prince (“funny, generous, talented beyond belief”) did wonders for her profile. Did she ever feel homesick for Britain? “I would love to say that when I’m in the States I miss Britain but it would be fake sentiment. It would be a token gesture. “I miss Britain a bit but my dayto-day life, and most importantly my children, live in the States and I can’t imagine home as being anywhere other than where they are. “I am a believer in the fact that it’s their turn now. If they wanted to move to China I would take off and follow them.” With the full-blooded bad girl diva of Dorothy Brock, Easton’s latest role is a logical progression from her origins as ‘squeaky clean’ pop singer through ‘raunchy sexpot’ of Prince’s

– one of the very few songs to have been banned for its lyrics.

Has she made deliberate choices throughout her career to alter her profile and keep people guessing?

“It would be wonderful to believe that it was a carefully laid plan,” she laughs. “But it was just me. It always has been. I started out at 19 from drama school and then went around the world many times. I grew up in the public eye. I went from an awkward 19 year old to a 25 year old with the experience of a 45 year old.”