Celine Dion cancels remaining dates of world tour due to health issues
Celine Dion has canceled the remaining dates of her world tour, which had already been postponed several times due to the pandemic and the singer's health issues.
"It is with tremendous disappointment that we have to announce today the cancellation of the Courage World Tour," Dion, 55, wrote on Instagram.
Dion had completed 52 dates of the tour before the COVD-19 pandemic shut down shows in 2020. When industries were opening back up in 2021, Dion filmed a move, "Love Again." However, at the end of 2022, she revealed she was diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a rare neurological disorder, and had to postpone the European leg of the tour.
"I'm so sorry to disappoint all of you once again. I'm working really hard to build back my strength, but touring can be very difficult even when you're 100%," the post continued. "It's not fair to you to keep postponing the shows, and even though it breaks my heart, it's best that we cancel everything now until I'm really ready to be back on stage again. I want you all to know, I'm not giving up… and I can't wait to see you again!"
While she is working hard on her recovery, she was not able to prepare for the upcoming shows, which were set to begin in August in the Netherlands and continue into spring 2024, according to a press release she shared in her Instagram post.
All tickets for the 42 canceled dates will be refunded, the statement says.
Stiff-person syndrome is similar to an autoimmune disease and it makes people become rigid, with a heightened sensitivity to noise and touch that can also lead to muscle spasm, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. It can also leave patients with "hunched over and stiffened" postures.
Dion's career has spanned decades after she won Eurovision — an internationally popular song contest featuring singers from different countries competing against each other — in 1988. After cementing herself as a power ballad icon with five Grammy wins, she began a popular Las Vegas residency.
Dion has had to postpone concert dates before. In 2014, she announced she was battling an illness that caused inflammation in her throat muscles and also had to care for her husband Rene, who had cancer. (He died in 2016.) Dion said in a statement at the time it had been "a very difficult and stressful" time for the family and she needed to postpone shows from her Caesars Palace residency and cancel Asia tour dates.