Have you never been mellow? Olivia has. (File photo)

Twenty-five years ago, Olivia Newton-John was urging us all to get physical.

These days, she's a little more focused on the healing powers of the mind and spirit.

The British-born Aussie singer, now 58 but still looking years younger, has dealt with just about every curveball life could throw at her over the last few decades.

In 1992, she was diagnosed with breast cancer -- on the same day that her father died -- and in 2005, her boyfriend Patrick McDermott disappeared following a still-unsolved boating mishap off the coast of California.

She's also survived declining record sales, the subsequent passing of her mother, and her daughter's battle with anorexia, funneling those experiences into albums like the 2006 disc Grace and Gratitude, and her tireless efforts on behalf of fellow cancer survivors.

"I think they saved me," says Newton-John, when asked whether writing or performing factored into her coping mechanisms. "They really kept my focus and helped me channel my energy into something productive."

The new disc is the latest in a series of albums Newton-John has cut in which she illuminates our inner strengths, and celebrates survival, happiness and health. Though she's careful not to sound glib -- and admits to periods of fear and helplessness -- she now considers her cancer diagnosis "a blessing" that helped her realize what's really important in life.

"After looking back over the last 15 years ... you really appreciate everything," she explains. "It really enforces the delicacy of life -- how lucky we all are -- and the preciousness of our relationships with each other."

Certainly Newton-John's New Age makeover marks something of a sea change from her earlier career incarnations, when she took the pop world by storm with radio staples like Have You Never Been Mellow, I Honestly Love You and Physical. And of course, generations of musical-theatre fans will always remember Newton-John as the embodiment of good-girl-turned-badass Sandy in the film version of Grease.

"It's timeless music, it's from the '50s, and it reminds people of a certain era," she says, by way of explaining the film's long-lasting appeal. "Plus everyone in that school reminds people of someone they knew in real life."

Of her followup in the critically panned Xanadu -- which has also achieved cult status, and been resurrected on Broadway -- she's a little more guarded.

"The music and the dancing (were) fantastic," she laughs. "The acting and the script -- not so much."

While her appearance at Burton Cummings Theatre tonight marks her first trip to Winnipeg, Newton-John does have a few Canadian connections -- many of which came in handy when it came time to cut a new Christmas record this year. The disc -- entitled Christmas Wish -- finds Newton-John dueting with Calgary cut-up Jann Arden, plus pals and frequent collaborators David Foster and Amy Sky.

And while she's just as busy these days with a holistic healing spa and in-development cancer centre in Australia, she's not above reflecting on her status as a show-biz survivor.

"It seemed so simple then, and now it's so complex, and because of the power of television, everybody seems to want to be a pop star," she says. "I'm so lucky, because I started so long ago that I don't feel any need for competition. I've already carved out my niche, I've already done it. The rest is just gravy."

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