Celine was the second concert residency by Canadian singer Celine Dion. It was staged at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, beginning 15 March 2011, with an estimated seventy performances per year. The residency ranked 26th in Pollstar's "Top 50 Worldwide Tour (Mid-Year)", earning over $20 million. Seen by more than 200,000 people, it became the number one show in 2011 for North America. It made Dion the top earner in Las Vegas, with $500,000 per show, and led to her being described as the "most profitable music act in Las Vegas" since Elvis Presley.
According to Pollstar end of year data (201113), the residency grossed $116.5 million from 726,346 tickets sold. In March 2013, Dion's manager and husband, René Angélil, announced that the residency contract had been extended to 2019. On 13 August 2014, Dion and Caesars announced that all planned shows through 22 March 2015 had been cancelled due to Angélil's battle with throat cancer.
On 24 March 2015, it was announced that Dion would resume the residency on 27 August 2015 with new theatrical and musical elements, along with a new visual presentation. Around the same time, Dion's management released a statement confirming the departure of the singer's longtime touring band members: musical director Claude "Mego" Lemay, guitarist André Coutu, keyboardist Yves Frulla, bassist Marc Langis, and violinist Jean-Seb Carré. The new band included musical director Scott Price, guitarist Kaven Girouard, bassist Yves Labonte, and violinist Phillippe Dunnigan, who took on the main violin solos. On 14 January 2016, Dion cancelled the remaining January performances following her husband's death from cancer. She resumed the residency on 23 February to a sold-out audience and positive critical response. Dion marked her 1000th Las Vegas show on 8 October 2016. The residency was seen by more than two million spectators. The show concluded on 8 June 2019, as announced on 24 September 2018.
Celine became the second biggest concert residency of all time, after A New Day..., with a gross approaching $300 million.
Background
On 15 March 2011, Dion began a three-year residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The new show included 31 musicians, consisting of a full orchestra and band. The residency was directed and produced by Ken Ehrlich, with creative input from Dion's long-time lighting designer Yves Aucoin and sound mixer/designer Denis Savage. Moment Factory was responsible for the visual elements of the production; the company had previously worked with Nine Inch Nails and DJ Tiesto. The residency did not include dancers or the Cirque du Soleil-style choreography used in Dion's earlier Colosseum show, A New Day.
Dion announced her return to Las Vegas during an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Tickets went on sale that same week and demand was exceptionally strong. The opening night performance on 15 March sold out within minutes. Rehearsals began on 17 January 2011 in Florida, and continued at the Colosseum starting on 17 February 2011 when Dion returned to Las Vegas to prepare for the new production.
In January 2011, it was reported that ticket sales for the residency had already surpassed the $10 million mark, making it the fastest-selling engagement in the venue's history. Caesars Palace President Gary Selesner stated that the initial run of shows through 17 April would be completely sold out.Strip Scribbles: Celine Dion hits the $10 million box office mark Las Vegas Sun Retrieved 7 February 2011
Critical reception The residency received widespread praise from music critics. USA Today wrote, "Dion isn't here to perform. She's here to kill it. Again... she isn't aiming for applause. She's looking for rapture." The Las Vegas Sun stated, "A magnificent masterpiece! Celine has single-handedly redefined class and elegance in onstage performances. Her voice is sent from the angels." The Montreal Gazette wrote, "Dion magnificent in new Las Vegas show. One hell of a show!...Jaw-dropping... Grandiose, yet intimate...Pure entertainment of the highest order. Worth every penny!" Richard Ouzounian of the Toronto Star headlined his review, "Celine Dion's Vegas show more spectacular than ever," adding, "If her last show sold out for five years, this one should make it for ten."
Commercial performance At the end of 2011, Pollstar reported that Dion ranked number 10 on its Top 25 North American Tours list, with a gross of $41.2 million. At the end of 2012, she placed number 29 on the Top 50 Worldwide Tours list, earning $36.5 million. In 2013, Pollstar listed her at number 23 on the Top 25 North American Tours with a gross of $38.8 million, and number 25 on the Worldwide Tours list, which included earnings from the European Tour 2013.
In its 2014 Mid Year Tour Gross report, Pollstar placed Dion at number 7 on the Top 100 North American Tours list and number 28 on the Top 100 Worldwide Tours list, with a gross of $21.1 million. In 2015, she ranked number 47 on the Top 100 American Tours list and number 77 on the Worldwide Grosses list, with a total gross of $22.6 million, reflecting her year-long break to care for her husband.
Dion ranked number 10 on the 2016 Year End Top 100 Worldwide Tours with a gross of $85.5 million, and number 14 on the 2016 Year End Top 200 North American Tours with $61.1 million. She then placed number 11 on the 2017 Year End Top 20 Worldwide Tours with a gross of $101.2 million, making her the highest-grossing female artist of that year. Dion also ranked number 15 on Billboards 2018 year-end boxscore chart with a total gross of $76.5 million.
Broadcasts and recordings
Several concerts were professionally filmed for television and promotional use. The premiere concert on 15 March 2011 was recorded in full, with excerpts later included in the documentary "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show", broadcast in early October 2011 on the Oprah Winfrey Network and used in advertisements for the residency. The documentary featured rehearsal footage of numerous songs, as well as excerpts from the premiere, including "Open Arms", "Goldfinger", "(If You Can't Sing It) You'll Have to Swing It (Mr. Paganini)", "River Deep, Mountain High", "My Heart Will Go On", "Ne me quitte pas", The Power of Love, "At Seventeen", and "Ben/Man in the Mirror". Additional broadcasts followed: "Open Arms" from the 26 March concert aired during the 2011 MDA Show of Strength telethon, and "Because You Loved Me", filmed on 15 June, was shown during the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards on 19 June 2011.
On 15 January 2012, Dion performed a special concert supporting "Play without Pain: Children's Sickle Cell Benefit". The entire event was filmed, with excerpts of "Open Arms" and "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" appearing in a behind-the-scenes video, and a 47‑second clip of "My Heart Will Go On" later sold to news outlets after the cancellation of future concerts in August 2014. A live video of "My Heart Will Go On", filmed on 1, 2, and 3 July 2011 and showing Dion performing inside a circular water curtain created by Aquatique Show, leaked on YouTube on 12 July 2012 before its official release on 31 July. Her performance of "Loved Me Back to Life" on 30 December 2013 was filmed and broadcast the next day on Entertainment Tonight Canada.
After her husband's death on 14 January 2016, Dion resumed her residency on 23 February 2016. A video tribute, along with "With One More Look at You/Watch Closely Now" and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now", was streamed live on Facebook, and an excerpt of "All by Myself" from that night was later shown on television as she struggled to finish the song. In 2017, several moments were streamed or uploaded to Facebook, including her tribute to the victims of the Manchester attack on 23 May, the first live performance of "How Does a Moment Last Forever" on 24 May, and a message with an excerpt of "Recovering" on 20 September after a destructive hurricane season. Following the Las Vegas mass shooting, Dion returned to the stage two days later, opening the show with a streamed speech and donating all proceeds from that performance to the victims' families.
On 31 December 2017, CNN aired a short satellite interview and an excerpt of "Because You Loved Me" during its New Year's Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, while Fox's New Year's Eve with Steve Harvey broadcast "River Deep, Mountain High", prerecorded on 25 November 2017. Dion did not change costumes during that show due to wearing a corset after cancelling the previous performance because of lower back spasms. Later recordings shared online included the first live performance of "Ashes" on 22 May 2018, with another excerpt posted on 10 February 2019 to mark the Grammy nomination for the Deadpool 2 soundtrack, and the first live performance of "Flying on My Own" on 7 June 2019, released the following day.
Set list The following set list was performed during the shows between 15 March 2011 and 22 January 2012.Sources for Mar 2011 – Jan 2012 set list
"I Drove All Night" video introduction "Open Arms" "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" "Because You Loved Me" "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" / "The Power of Love" (medley)
Violin solo interlude "(If You Can't Sing It) You'll Have to Swing It (Mr. Paganini)" "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" "The Reason"
James Bond Theme instrumental interlude "Goldfinger" / "Nobody Does It Better" / "Live and Let Die" (medley)
"Spinning Wheel" background singers intermission "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" "Overjoyed" (virtual duet with Stevie Wonder)
Video interlude "At Seventeen" "Beauty and the Beast" "Ne me quitte pas" "All by Myself"
"Smooth Criminal" / "Beat It" instrumental interlude "Ben" / "Man in the Mirror" (medley)
"Declaration of Love" instrumental interlude "Love Can Move Mountains" / "River Deep, Mountain High" (medley)
Titanic instrumental interlude "My Heart Will Go On"
Shows Legs 1–10 Date City Country Venue Attendance Revenue Leg 1Leg 1 boxscores:
15 March 2011 Las Vegas United States The Colosseum at Caesars Palace 84,209 / 84,209 $14,083,340 16 March 2011 19 March 2011 20 March 2011 22 March 2011 23 March 2011 25 March 2011 26 March 2011 1 April 2011 2 April 2011 3 April 2011 6 April 2011 7 April 2011 9 April 2011 10 April 2011 12 April 2011 13 April 2011 15 April 2011 16 April 2011 17 April 2011 Leg 2Leg 2 boxscore:
7 June 2011 Las Vegas United States The Colosseum at Caesars Palace 72,055 / 72,055 $12,019,715 8 June 2011 11 June 2011 12 June 2011 14 June 2011 15 June 2011 18 June 2011 19 June 2011 21 June 2011 22 June 2011 25 June 2011 26 June 2011 28 June 2011 29 June 2011 1 July 2011 2 July 2011 3 July 2011 Leg 3Leg 3 boxscore:
19 July 2011 Las Vegas United States The Colosseum at Caesars Palace 71,730 / 71,730 $11,905,240 20 July 2011 23 July 2011 24 July 2011 26 July 2011 27 July 2011 30 July 2011 31 July 2011 2 August 2011 3 August 2011 6 August 2011 7 August 2011 9 August 2011 10 August 2011 12 August 2011 13 August 2011 14 August 2011 Leg 4Leg 4 boxscore
28 December 2011 Las Vegas United States The Colosseum at Caesars Palace66,490 / 66,490$10,628,760 30 December 2011 31 December 2011 3 January 2012 4 January 2012 7 January 2012 8 January 2012 10 January 2012 11 January 2012 14 January 2012 15 January 2012 17 January 2012 18 January 2012 20 January 2012 21 January 2012 22 January 2012 Leg 5Leg 5 boxscore:
9 June 2012 Las Vegas United States The Colosseum at Caesars Palace 76,468 / 77,991 $12,569,716 10 June 2012 12 June 2012 13 June 2012 16 June 2012 17 June 2012 19 June 2012 20 June 2012 23 June 2012 24 June 2012 26 June 2012 27 June 2012 30 June 2012 1 July 2012 3 July 2012 4 July 2012 6 July 2012 7 July 2012 8 July 2012 Leg 6Leg 6 boxscore: