Celine Dion performs during the final show of her Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on June 8, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
After sixteen years, 1,141 shows, infinite standing ovations and a generous stream of kooky repartee to the very end, Celine Dionended her record-breaking residency at Caesars Palace on Saturday night (June 8).
Las Vegas has been home to Dion since 2003, when she opened first engagement at Caesars, A New Day; that ran through 2007 and remains the highest-grossing Las Vegas residency for a musical artist (with $385.1 million earned across its 714 shows).
Her second residency, Celine, opened in 2011. A staggering 4.5 million fans came to see her on her gilt stretch of the Strip between the two productions. Her impact on the city is undeniable, and the vast majority of industry professionals who run Las Vegas’s musical landscape credit her for ushering in a new era of entertainment on par with the legendary reigns of Elvis Presley, the Rat Pack and Liberace. In Vegas’ cultural pantheon, she shoulders up to the King and Ol’ Blue Eyes, her golden tuxedo and soaring mezzo soprano fitting neighbors to to their own iconic voices and show suits. She’s earned her place among them, and she solidified that with an epic finale that delivered a 20-song, hit-studded set that didn’t just pull at heartstrings but gently unraveled them.
Conversations in multiple languages echoed through the aisles of the Colosseum as an international, sold out, sequin-clad crowd — which included Dion’s countrywoman, Shania Twain, who had a Colosseum residency of her own from 2012-2014 — gathered to witness Dion’s fond farewell. Before making their way to their seats, they were handed envelopes that opened to reveal a note with Dion’s flourish of a signature on the stationary: a brief letter thanks Caesars Palace and Concerts West/AEG Presents for their partnership and the crowd as well, and highlights the personal significance of the residency for Dion and her family.
“Over sixteen years ago, my dear beloved René and I shared a dream and a vision to create a spectacular show which we could stage in one destination, night after night, with the hopes that people from all over the world would travel to see,” she writes. “You didn’t disappoint us.” (Dion’s husband and manager, René Angélil, died in 2016.) “You traveled far and wide, as you’ve done tonight, to sing with us, dance with us, laugh with us, and even cry with us (tears of joy, we hope!)”
Dion got her wish. From seraphic opener “The Power of Love” through her sob-inducing finale of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” she ran the emotional gamut but kept the mood as celebratory and silly as possible. Deeply funny and always game for a joke, she delighted in prowling across the stage and knocking out a series of high-kicks (especially during 2002’s “I’m Alive”) and punchlines. She pointed out that “tickets come with a seat” when she was met with yet another standing ovation. When she noticed a man heading for the door halfway through the set, she addressed him and was met with an urgent “Gotta go!” — nature called, clearly, and Dion’s slapstick response incited roars of laughter from the audience. She held the show until he returned, vamping for a full two minutes and teasing him when he made it back to his seat.
“We all waited for you! 4,300 people waited for you, man!” she exclaimed. “You know what — take your time now, it goes faster. How sweet, he said ‘Thank you so much.’ Of course, he’s broke! I mean, two tickets, you come and see this last show — of course you’re broke! Of course I’m gonna wait for you, baby, to come back!”
(Excerpt) Read more in: Billboard
