Celine Dion wept tears of joy on Saturday as she fulfilled her dream of returning to the stage after years battling a rare neurological disorder, with a sell-out concert in Paris.
The 58-year-old French Canadian singer appeared visibly moved as she opened her first full concert in six years with her 1990s French-language ballad “On ne change pas” (“One Doesn’t Change”), singing to a crowd of 30,000 enthralled fans that one newspaper said included US former first lady Michelle Obama.
“These are, of course, tears of joy. I’m so delighted to see you,” Dion said, blowing kisses to the audience at the packed Plénitude Arena on the western edge of Paris. 
Her return to the stage underscored a remarkable comeback after Stiff Person Syndrome, an incurable condition that causes stiffness and cramps, forced her to cancel shows and cast years of uncertainty over whether she would ever perform again.
“The path was rockier than expected,” she said, speaking in French and English.
“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,” she added.
The largely female crowd sported sequined dresses and tops, glittered cheeks, and T-shirts emblazoned with the star’s image or nods to her biggest hits.
Just hours before, one of the best-selling singers of all time greeted admirers outside her luxury hotel a short walk from the Arc de Triomphe.
Paris spared no effort in welcoming Dion, drawing thousands of fans from across the world, including some who flew in from as far away as the French Polynesian island of Tahiti.
For days, Paris played host to costume contests, giant karaoke parties and tribute cruises on the Seine.
On Friday, the iconic cauldron rose above the Tuileries Garden, echoing the diva’s surprise appearance up the Eiffel Tower to perform “Hymn to Love” by Edith Piaf during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics in 2024.
A lyric from the song, “I’d go and fetch the moon if you asked me to”, along with the singer’s first name, was projected in big letters onto the balloon.
The suburban train station serving the arena has been temporarily renamed “Celine.”
French daily Le Parisien said the former first lady of the United States was “discreetly attending this first concert”.
Dion has regularly stepped outside the Royal Monceau hotel to greet waiting fans, at times breaking into song and dance with them well into the early hours.
Recall that over her four-decade career, Dion has sold around 260 million albums in English and French, with hits including “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” and “Because You Loved Me”.
Dion revealed in late 2022 that she had been diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome, an autoimmune condition that can cause severe muscle stiffness and agonising spasms.
Dion has described it as making her feel as though she is being strangled, with cramps so intense they have left her with broken ribs.
She has returned to the stage after what she has described as years of training “like an athlete”, doing ballet and Pilates several times a week, as well as voice therapy.
