She worked in the theatre from a young age. She quickly became famous in the role of Eva Perón in the musical "Evita" in 1978. She studied acting at the Aida Foster stage school in London and then played roles in the British tour of the show "The Roar of the Greasepaint, the Smell of the Crowd" and the first London production of "Hair". She played Sandy in the London production of "Grease" and appeared as one of Michael Crawford's girlfriends in "Billy". She has since said she was about to leave the world of acting, possibly to become a teacher, but then the role in "Evita" was offered to her.