'Simply the best': Caroline Borole at home on stage with 'Proud Tina'

Caroline Borole is always up for a challenge.

Since 2017, the singer has taken the stage to perform “Proud Tina: The Ultimate Tribute to Tina Turner.”

The stage production showcases all of Turner’s biggest hits from the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.

“I’m very happy to be in the states,” Borole says. “Getting to travel the world with this show has been amazing.”

“Proud Tina” will make a stop at Popejoy Hall on Friday, March 8.

The production will feature hits such as “Simply the Best,” “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “Proud Mary,” “River Deep, Mountain High,” “Nutbush City Limits,” “We Don’t Need Another Hero,” “What You Get is What You See,” “Better Be Good to Me,” “I Can’t Stand the Rain” and “Private Dancer.”

Borole says the 90-minute show is high energy and takes a lot out of her.

“I mean, I have moments obviously like fatigue and whatnot,” she says. “But it all comes from just having a blast. Once I get myself in the zone, then I can’t help myself to have the best time ever.”

Borole says over the past seven years, being part of the production has been special.

She’s learned a lot about Turner.

“The most fun for me has been learning how to be her,” she says. “Her mannerism, her technicalities. The way she thinks. Her nuances. The way she moves her leg because she doesn’t dance like a normal person. Even when she talks, the way her lips are kind of curved to the side when she’s making a joke. It’s basically learning who this person was and, of course, I grew up listening to her music.”

Borole says the process of becoming Turner is consuming and an opportunity to learn something new.

“Every single time I take the stage, I learn something new about her,” she says. “That’s why it doesn’t get old for me. The songs are different each night because the audience changes. I also have a different energy each night because it’s based on how I feel.”

Though Turner died on May 24, 2023, Borole speaks of her in present tense.

“For me, she’s ongoing and still lives,” she says. “Having the privilege of stepping into her shoes and singing the songs of her career has been amazing for me. I’m an actress as well, so I know how to really get into roles and engulf myself into those characterizations.”