How Celine Dion pulled off greatest comeback we’ve ever seen with Paris residency after fears she’d never perform again

HOLLYWOOD and the music industry love a comeback… but they rarely come off. Whitney Houston’s final tour was a disaster; Michael Jackson never made it to the stage for his This Is It residency in 2009. Celine Dion pulled off greatest comeback we’ve ever seen with her Paris residency Credit: Getty Packed out crowds desperate to see the music icon perform Credit: BackGrid But on Saturday night, Céline Dion pulled off perhaps the greatest comeback we have ever seen—after fears she would never perform again as she battled stiff-person syndrome. As tears fell down her cheeks, the music icon beamed as she appeared on stage in a stunning black gown and diamond necklace larger than I’ve ever seen before. Sign up for the Showbiz newsletter Thank you! Céline, 58, said: “I had promised myself not to cry, but I’m so happy to see you all. I missed you. I’m going to sing without crying.” She added in French to Paris’ Plenitude Arena: “These are, of course, tears of joy. I’m so delighted to see you.” Céline added in English: “Thank you so very much for coming. If it’s your first time in Paris, I hope you fall in love with it just like I did. “Finally, it’s amazing we are all together. I made a promise to come back, to be back on stage. So here I am, singing for you and singing for me, singing live. “Thank you so very much for your support, your patience, and if I may say so, I am everything I am because you loved me.” As I sit there alongside 45,000 other fans, it’s clear we are watching history in the making. Most read in Showbiz I glance at the people on either side of me; both are sending messages to family WhatsApp groups about Céline’s big return. I also spammed my own family group chat with videos of Céline. At points, Céline herself looked nervous—knowing impossibly high notes were just around the corner. In fact, as she belted out Bridget Jones classic “All By Myself”, she gestured to the crowd in relief as she pulled off the song a cappella. There were fears the star would never perform again as she battled stiff-person syndrome Credit: Reuters ‘I had promised myself not to cry, but I’m so happy to see you all. I missed you. I’m going to sing without crying’, said Celine Credit: AFP For British fans making the trip, though, be warned: while the show is nothing short of spectacular—from Céline’s vocals to the production—a large amount is in French, and the set list is dominated by her French hits. It’s impossible to criticise her for this, though, considering the residency is in Paris, a reported 70% of tickets have gone to locals, and Céline herself is French-Canadian. Ever the diva, Céline changed her outfit five times over a two-and-a-half-hour show—visibly overcome with emotion all the way through. Before returning for an encore, the singer belted out operatic classic La Wally as snow slowly fell down from the heavens. Speaking in her 2024 documentary, Céline insisted she has no ego—instead letting her voice take charge. Céline said: “You can be the leader, my ego is not that big. If you want to take it, I don’t care. I’m having a good time here.” It’s the sort of comment many would scoff at. After all, how could someone of Céline’s talent, global fame, and fortune not have an ego? But during the show, I lost track of the number of times she said ‘thank you’ to both fans in the arena and her band and choir onstage with her. Gesturing backstage before taking her final bow, Céline said: “There are hundreds of people you can’t see behind the scenes—behind the scenes, on the sides, everywhere. Thank you all, because we put this show together.” In the run-up to the gigs, she’s also regularly appeared outside her hotel—sometimes in the early hours of the morning—to greet well-wishers. Céline confirmed she had extended the gig to her limit in a bid not to disappoint fans. Céline said: “It’s like a whole bible of songs, of course. And now, I can’t even choose anymore; I love them so much, but I can’t perform all of them. “Normally I used to do a 1h 40m show, and it’s longer now and everything is extended.” She was even filmed playing Rock, Paper, Scissors outside with them at 4am last week. It’s perhaps the reason that the level of goodwill towards the star is unshakable. Even as we sat in the arena on Saturday night waiting for Céline, who arrived 45 minutes late, the mood wasn’t one of annoyance. It was of concern that at the final hurdle something had gone wrong. That after everything, her health had one final cruel twist up its sleeve. But what’s 45 minutes to many who had waited for this moment for over half a decade? The singer at the Grammy Awards in 1998 Credit: AP:Associated Press Two English-speaking fans enjoyed the singer’s comeback performance at La Defense Credit: BBC It’s been six years since Céline last took to the stage for a full show. That was in Newark in March 2020 as part of her Courage World Tour. Her last UK concert was in front of 65,000 fans at London’s Hyde Park as part of the British Summer Time Festival in July 2019. Since then, there have been an awful lot of false starts. Covid cut short the first leg of her 2019 Courage World Tour, while a planned Las Vegas residency in November 2021 was axed due to her ill health. A return to the road to pick up where her tour left off was also called off before Céline revealed her devastating diagnosis to the world in December 2022. Speaking in her heartbreaking Prime documentary, I Am: Celine Dion, she vowed to make it back to the stage at all costs. The music icon said: “If I can’t run, I’ll walk. If I can’t walk, I’ll crawl.” But that journey back to the stage has been hard-fought. Speaking on stage on Saturday night in Paris, Céline said: “The path was rockier than expected. “But I held on to a faint ray of light in the distance, deep in the mountains. “Tonight, I want to sing for you, sing for myself, sing for life.” Speaking of her condition, Céline added: “By living with it day in and day out, I’ve come to terms with it.” In May last year, Céline jetted to Switzerland for a surprise performance at the Eurovision Song Contest. Her jet was spotted at Basel airport, and there were so many leaks about her planned appearance that BBC commentator Graham Norton even mentioned her appearance during the live final. Sadly, her health had other ideas and she was forced to pull out at the last minute under strict doctor’s orders. Céline was rumoured to have agreed to perform her French-language track “Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi”, which was her winning Eurovision entry for Switzerland in 1988. With her residency, it’s fair to say that Paris has gone mad for Céline. La Défense station, the closest Métro to the arena, is adorned with messages from the music icon. Even the escalators have “Celiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine” embossed into metal plating. A pop-up store in the city sells everything from Céline fans and T-shirts to macarons in gold tins. On almost every street corner are official posters reminding the world of the landmark run of shows. Not that it needed any advertising. Spasm hell of disorder STIFF Person Syndrome is a rare progressive neurological disorder that causes muscular and stiffness spasms. Just 8,000 people are estimated to live with the condition worldwide and according to NHS England there is currently no cure for the autoimmune disease. Singer Celine Dion, diagnosed with it in 2022, first experienced symptoms — including a mild vocal spasm — 17 years earlier. Over 9 million people registered for just 528,000 tickets earlier this year. The online scramble to secure them made the madness seen in 2025 for Oasis’ reunion tour look like child’s play. At one point, 2 million people were in an online queue—desperate to see Céline return to her former glory. Officially, tickets ranged from around £150 to £300. But as I took my seat, I bumped into a friend with his mum who had paid £1,300 each for tickets on a resale site. “We are die-hard fans,” he told me, casually insisting seeing Céline one more time was non-negotiable. The crowd was littered with celebs flying in for the occasion, too. Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King were seen sitting in floor seats. Meanwhile, country legend Shania Twain, a close friend of Céline, and her husband watched on from a suite. A further batch of ten shows set for spring 2027 was added earlier this summer in a bid to cope with demand. They sold out instantly. Sources tell me that as long as her health holds out, a return to Las Vegas and Montreal in Canada is on the cards. For those who have missed the shows, I’m told the production has been snapped up by a streaming giant in a seven-figure deal. Prime are believed to be the front-runners for the deal after teaming up with Céline for her 2024 documentary. Céline jetted into Paris from her home in Nevada two weeks ago before checking into a top suite at the 5-star Raffles hotel. The Sun’s Bizarre column previously revealed how the hotel bill for the vocal powerhouse is close to £1 million. Of course, this is being footed by promoters AEG Live. It’s a drop in the ocean for the company. The suite is equipped with a private gym where Céline has been able to undergo non-negotiable physiotherapy sessions. Ever since her arrival, an army of doctors and personal trainers has closely monitored her. While it appears to be under control for now, stiff-person syndrome is a cruel degenerative disease and can flare up. It causes statue-like rigidity and painful spasms. Hinting at her struggles to the packed arena on Saturday, Céline said in French: “Look around here—all around you, right here in this room, we don’t know what the person next to us is going through. There are people going through hardships, grief, and sorrow. There are people radiating energy and joy. So let’s take that energy and share it. That’s what music is for. Tonight, we’ll sing, we’ll dance, and we’ll celebrate.” Despite the clock heading to 11:30pm, when it came time to take her final bow, Céline kept looking back at the audience as she strutted to the back of the stage—taking everything in. Fighting back tears, Céline beamed: “Thank you so much. I just fulfilled a dream.” Comment now