Elaine Paige comes to the Theatre Royal next week in a completely different role - she is playing in a French farce and not singing a note.

The First Lady of musical theatre has swapped her high Cs for some wisecracks and is treading the boards the way she always thought she would - as an actress.

Elaine, whose father lives near Bognor, is relishing her new role and having a great time on the show's national tour, which ends in Brighton.

She says: "Although it is hard work, I am having great fun. To be honest, not having to sing for eight shows a week is a real plus."

Paige shot to fame in 1978 when she was picked for the role of Eva Peron in the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice show Evita.

For years before that she had been a struggling actress taking whatever roles she could.

She says: "When Evita opened I really was a total unknown and it was an overnight success story.

"I went from never being mentioned in the Press to being on the front page.

"And it was very difficult to cope with. Suddenly it seemed as though every journalist in the country was at my door asking me questions.

"Luckily, that has all died down now so I can get on with my life. The funny thing is that Evita almost never happened for me. I wanted to be an actress and never really wanted to be in a musical.

"My agent was the one who was enthusiastic about the role of Eva Peron and persuaded me to listen to the album.

"One listen to the music and the lyrics convinced me I should go for it. It became the perfect role for me and has led to all the wonderful things that have happened to me since."

Paige says musicals are terribly gruelling and have taken their toll on her body.

The most demanding was her role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage version of the film noir Sunset Boulevard.

She says: "Although I loved doing it, I think it was the most difficult of all the shows I have done.

"The gowns and costumes I had to wear were from the era of the silent movies and were covered in beads.

"They were so heavy, you really felt them dragging you down.

"Then there was the staircase on which I spent most of my time climbing up and down.

"Someone once counted and on a matinee day I climbed 1,500 steps.

"It did my knees in and my ankles. Talk about suffering for my art - I was in agony after every show.

"But I really mustn't complain. The musical theatre has given me everything I have and I am forever grateful for the wonderful shows I have been in.

"Don't rule me out of being back in the West End and in a musical. This break with Feydeau is only a short break. I will be back."

When not working Paige is busy on the tennis courts and has just taken up clay pigeon shooting - as a means of letting off steam without hurting anybody.

She says: "Keeping fit is important and I also like to be busy.

"I go to the cinema and theatre a lot and like entertaining friends and going out to restaurants.

"I am looking to explore the restaurants of Brighton while I am here.

"I haven't been to Brighton for ages but I do love the Theatre Royal, although this will be the first time I have played there.

"The former owner, David Land, is a great friend of mine and invited me down to see Joseph And The Technicolor Dreamcoat years ago.

"He took me all round the theatre and let me poke into every nook and cranny, go up all the staircases and see everything I wanted.

"It is a lovely old theatre and I am really looking forward to playing there."

And so to Feydeau and Where There's A Will.

Paige plays the clever, capricious wife of a serial misbehaver.

She says: "I play Angele, who enjoys manipulating the men around her, making sure they pay a price for their misbehaviour.

"The rhythm of the play, with its ebb and flow, is rather like a musical and the pace is fast and furious.

"Entrances and exits have to be crisp and definite, just like a song.

"Around me are Nick Le Prevoet and David Warner, who both terribly experienced.

"It is lovely being part of a small company where we have had time to get to know one another well and then put the whole thing together in a way that virtually sizzles.

"It is also an honour to be directed by Sir Peter Hall, who has been very gentle with me.

"He has taken me back to my roots in the theatre and tapped a new source of energy for me.

"It is very funny. We have a new translation, which the audience will just lap up. Feydeau was a master of farce and his work is absolutely ideal for a warm summer evening."

Tickets: 01243 328488.