Pared down and powerful: Celine Dion embraces her comeback style in Paris

Celine Dion performs at the Plenitude Arena in Paris on Saturday, the opening night of the Canadian singer's 26-show residency in the French capital. Sarah Meyssonnier/Reuters

For most performers, booking 26 shows is business as usual. For Celine Dion, it’s more like a high-stakes wager and a test of will, rolled into one.

After putting live performances on pause in 2022 when she was diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a debilitating neurological disorder that made the physical demands of touring impossible, Dion officially made her return to the stage on Saturday with the opening night of her residency at Paris’s Plenitude Arena.

For her first look of the night, Dion took the stage for a seven-song stretch in a black Dior silk dress. Nicolas Gerardin/Supplied

Wearing a militia-style jacket and pants, Dion opened Act 2 with My Heart Will Go On. Nicolas Gerardin/Supplied