Word: dion
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...Elvis personified the naughty Vegas of the 1970s, Dion is the perfect fit for the cleaned-up, family-friendly mecca of 2003. Her music and persona are scrupulously inoffensive--sometimes just bland. But her voice is a natural wonder of immense range and clarity, the kind of irony-free tourist attraction that the new Vegas adores. Most important, Dion has sold 150 million albums worldwide, making her the biggest female singer of all time and a true marquee draw. Still, even Dion realizes that her voice alone isn't worth a $200 ticket. "That's why this show...
...idea for A New Day came to Dion in 2000 when she saw O, Cirque du Soleil's bizarrely beautiful mime-gymnastics-diving show, at the Bellagio hotel. "The second it started," she says, "I was breathtaken. At the end I turned to Rene and said, 'If ever I do a concert again, this is what I want.'" Angelil, who loves his wife only slightly more than his personalized blackjack betting system, said it would be logistically impossible to mount such a complicated show profitably--unless, of course, she was willing to do it in Las Vegas permanently. "Sure enough...
After meeting with Dragone, O's director, and negotiating with three casinos and various producers, Angelil put together a deal at Caesars Palace. Then he and Dion stood back and let Dragone try to create a show out of Dion's songbook. "At first I did not know at all the repertoire of Celine," says Dragone. "I do not listen to this music. It's very pop-ish, so it is not so easy to find a tableau behind the songs. There is not a theme, except love of course...
...five months, Dragone, Dion, Michaels and 54 dancers holed up in La Louviere, Dragone's Belgian hometown, seeking inspiration. When they arrived in Las Vegas in December, only a few details of the show were decided. A New Day would feature a mix of 18 Dion songs and covers, among them such classic Vegas numbers as Fever and I've Got the World on a String. All the backdrops--including Times Square, a train station and a Florentine campo--would be broadcast on a giant $6 million LED screen. There would be a wordless Romeo and Juliet interlude, a tree...
...nearly complete version of A New Day that TIME saw in late February is narrative free. The show opens with Dion singing Nat King Cole's Nature Boy in a solitary spot, then segues into a series of increasingly colorful, abstract production numbers. Dion is at center stage for some songs and hovers at the edges during others while an usher character provides comic relief. The dancers--with moves veering from Flashdance to Fonteyn--are electric. The LED screen provides crisp and dynamic scenery. Dion's voice sounds fantastic...