Canada: Céline Dion back On The Music Scene Soon!
Celine Dion, Soon to Return. The Canadian superstar, who has been battling a neurological disease that led her to cancel a wave of concerts worldwide, will soon grace our screens with a new Prime Video documentary, « I am: Céline Dion », directed by American filmmaker Irene Taylor.
The film, in production since 2021 in close collaboration with Celine Dion, is set to be released on the streaming platform on June 25th. It promises to delve into her recent years of absence. « I decided to document this part of my life, to try to raise awareness about this little-known disease and to help those who share this diagnosis », she wrote in the caption of an Instagram post, discussing the development of the documentary last January.
According to a Prime Video statement, the film aims to take viewers « into Celine’s past and present » and her battle against Stiff Person Syndrome, a disease she revealed she was suffering from last May. « Je suis: Céline Dion » was filmed for over a year as the singer « prepared to live an open and authentic life despite the illness », the synopsis continues.
Stiff Person Syndrome, a neurological disease primarily causing « fluctuating stiffness of the trunk and limbs and painful muscle spasms », according to Orphanet, can be highly disabling. It forced the “I’m Alive” singer to cancel a series of concerts planned for 2023, and then a forty-show tour in Europe until April 2024.
She hasn’t performed on stage since a concert in Newark, USA, in March 2020, during a tour interrupted by Covid. Her health condition has prevented her from reconnecting with her audience since then. « These past years have been a huge challenge for me, from discovering the illness to learning how to live with it and manage it, without letting it define me. As the journey towards resuming my singing career continues, I realize how much I missed being able to see my fans », she shares.