Celine Dion blew kisses and waved a toffee apple in the air as fans wished her luck before she was whisked off to the first night of her comeback residency in Paris.
The singer looked overwhelmed as she stepped outside the five-star Raffles hotel to chants of her name and choruses of songs from her back catalogue. Many of the hundreds waiting had been keeping watch on the Parisian street for hours to get a glimpse of the star.
Fans and a toffee apple
Generous with her time, Celine stopped to talk to as many fans as she could. Some brought cards and bouquets of roses to hand to her, but it was a wrapped toffee apple that caught her eye. The Canadian star, known for her kooky sense of humour, kept hold of it and waved it in the air to the enjoyment of the crowd.
Before making her exit, Celine opened the car door and stepped on the sill so fans could see her better. She then led them in a football chant as she thrust her apple in the air.
Security and the show
The waiting crowds were watched over by 10 bodyguards while a convoy of 12 SUV Mercedes were on standby, along with police officers on bikes, to whisk Celine to the first of her 18 dates at Plenitude Arena.
The Canadian singer will perform for the first time in four years tonight after taking time away from the spotlight when she was diagnosed with Stiff Person's Syndrome.
Living with Stiff Person's Syndrome
Celine's battle with Stiff Person's Syndrome began long before she officially knew what was wrong. The singer revealed she experienced symptoms for 17 years, dealing with worsening muscle stiffness and difficulty walking.
Most frightening for the star, who has sung since she was a child, her vocal chords began to feel 'hijacked'. She explained feeling spasms that locked her throat muscles in place.
While she had tried to carry on performing without showing signs of struggle, she adopted a multitude of tactics. She changed the tone of songs, pointed the microphone towards the audience so they could sing for her, pretended the sound was malfunctioning and occasionally left the stage for brief periods.
But in August 2022, the icon received her diagnosis. Four months later, in December, she finally told her fans what she had been going through.
“Lying for me, the burden was too much. Lying to the people who got me where I am today, I could not do it anymore,” she previously explained.
And describing how she told her three kids, she said: "You lost your dad, [but] mom has a condition, and it’s different. I’m not going to die. It’s something that I’m going to learn to live with."
The condition is a rare diagnosis that can leave sufferers effectively trapped inside bodies that suddenly become rigid, painful and almost impossible to control. There is currently no cure and Celine has spent years fighting to reclaim control of her own body.
