Shanghai, China april 11th

Posted April 11, 200817 yr

Celien Dion, driven by power of love, to debut in China
www.chinaview.cn 2008-03-26 08:22:02

Dion looked spectacular, her body in catwalk model shape, so slim yet so powerful giving her the ability to hit those amazing high notes.

She displayed her vocal skills through some of her biggest ballads along with new songs from "Taking Chances."

The audience roared with delight and gave a standing ovation when she unleashed 1990s hits such as "The Power of Love," "Because You Loved Me" and "All by Myself."

Canadian singer Celine Dion serves up a plate of food during a visit to a school children feeding programme in Soweto township near Johannesburg, February 15 2008.

And it came as no great surprise that the 90-minute concert should conclude with a spectacular rendition of the Canadian singer's signature, Academy Award-winning hit "My Heart Will Go On."
Dion has always attributed her prosperous career to her husband, Rene Angelil, who mortgaged his house to finance her first record. "I've been very lucky on a lot of fronts," she says.

"I have a great team around me, led of course, by Rene. He's always made the best decisions on my behalf, right from day one, and he's always made sure that I had the best songs, best producers to work with, and great opportunities to perform as an artist."

Dion once took a two-year break from the spotlight to dedicate herself to her husband after he was diagnosed with throat cancer, and to give birth to their son, Rene-Charles Dion Angelil. "I learned (from the hiatus) that I love to be a mother and a wife ... and to stay at home, cook and clean, do housework, and all those simple things," she says. "I learned that there is life after show business and it's something that is more important than anything else on Earth... that's family."

Dion's husband, son, mother and sisters are all traveling with her during the tour.

Her latest album "Taking Chances" features different music genres moving away, at times, from her best-known soft-rock style.

Canadian singer Celine Dion smiles as she poses in traditional Zulu beadwork and heargear at a school children feeding programme in Soweto township near Johannesburg, February 15 2008.

Dion explains: "It is a little edgier than my previous albums, but I'm still the same person who's been singing the ballads and love songs for most of my career." Besides positive, love songs, it also features heavy singles such as "This Time" which deals with the dark subject of spousal abuse.

When asked if she would ever get tired of singing her big ballads, the answer was a definite "no." "When you have such amazing songs like those, it's impossible to get tired of singing them," she continues. "'My Heart Will Go On' and all the things that happened around it was, and still is, a great highlight of my career."

Dion says she cannot wait to get to Chinese mainland. "I am so excited about doing my first show on Chinese mainland. I've heard from many people that my songs have been very popular there over the years.
"We've been asked to come before but it never worked out in our schedule. So it's going to be amazing to finally perform there.

"I know from pictures and from television that China has some beautiful and historical sites, so I'm hoping to get to see them. It's going to be a fantastic experience," she concludes.

(Source: Shanghai Daily)