Default It's just called...'CLEINE'
There's a new exotic frozen daiquiri/frozen yogurt beverage bar
in the RIO. It's called 'EVENING CALL' www.eveningcall.com
I tend to prefer a simple, tasty, chocolate/vanilla swirl without all
the toppings...other folks prefer...THE WORKS!
Okay, poor segway I know leading into my thoughts on CELINE's
new Show at the Colosseum in Las Vegas but...unlike frozen yogurt
(and now I totally contradict myself...)
I prefer THE WORKS of 'A New Day' over this new residency 'CELINE'.
I liked all of the M&M's, Gummy Bears, Sprinkles, Hot Fudge and Caramel
Sauce that FRANKO DRAGONE created for her first Show. I like over the top
WOW! on my Vegas Shows.
That said, don't get the impression 'CELINE' doesn't impress...THE SHOW
IS VERY IMPRESSIVE and...for all you Celine fans out there that didn't care
for all the 'Cirque' style visuals in 'A New Day'...in this version, you've got
much more of just Celine and her music!
All the hype, all the WELCOME HOME CELINE, saturates Las Vegas. There's
an energy in town and the smell of MONEY!
Will Celine save Las Vegas?...probably not, but her presence will certainly be a
great boost to the economy. CET claims they'll pull in and 'extra' one million
bucks every night Celine performs.
Tuesday, March 22nd, 6pm and Caesars Palace is BUZZZIN'. The 'stand by' ticket
line is LONG, while other hopeful Celine fans wonder through the crown building in
front of the Colosseum stairs asking..."spare tickets?"..."anyone have spare tickets for sale?"
Celine Dion...the beloved, raining queen diva surpreme of Las Vegas is holding court for
the next 5 years. (the 2 additional years yet to be announced)
Folks from all over the world are here...dressed up and READY TO PARTY!
The lines going into the Colosseum went surprisingly well. Security was very tight. You go
through both the metal detector AND get 'wanded'. Purses are searched and (the usual)
NO CAMERAS.
Showtime on your ticket says 7:30 but the usual 7:50 is a bit more accurate.
If you remember, the Colosseum was built for Celine. The stage is as deep as it is wide
and ONLY 'A New Day' has ever used the entire stage and all it has to offer. Much to my
surprise, 'CELINE' only uses half of it for her new Show, just like ELTON, CHER, and BETTE did.
NOW IT'S SHOWTIME!
The visual of the stage is fit for a queen. The front curtain is all in red, with floral patterns projected
on it. Right and Left...the side walls are hung with 22 panels each (later to grow to 40 panels each)
and surround the Front Orchestra section down front.
Amber earth tones with cream colored flowers are projected on these, but as the Show unfolds, will
continue the colors and graphics from the giant LED backdrop. It's a great effect that wraps the
front section right into the Show...very cool.
The lights go down, the audience cheers, and the 'ever popular' video screen drops down, lol.
JAY LENO introduces...for the first time, a young..."up and comer, Celine Dion".
As these pre-show videos go, this one isn't all that bad. They seem to be getting more and more
the 'norm' these days in the Vegas Shows...kill off the length of a song before the 'real deal' starts.
It's back to the beginning with a montage of early performances, the end of 'A New Day'...some
touching family video and of course...THE TWINS (of course! lol)
Then the video screen goes up, the red curtain parts and there she is...standing in front of another
giant, glowing, white curtain.
She greets the crowd and talks for a little bit (and talking to the audience for 'just a little bit' shows
real control for her LOL!)
THEN...on her command...arms raised high...the curtain falls to the floor and dissolves into a churning,
pulsating cloud that quickly vanishes from the stage, revealing her 31 piece orchestra and the songs start!
The stage sets look GREAT! The orchestra sits on 5 platforms. The move, they split...they're at the front
of the stage, the back of the stage and sometimes...totally off the stage.
Light, color, and textures are everywhere. At one point, a crystal chandelier lowers over the stage...
it's quite a sight.
After 4 complete songs, it's time for a costume change. The red curtain draws...this time lit with images
of ancient memorial archways then...from the back of the audience Rear Orchestra, strolls a solo violinist.
A catchy little ditty, the audience is quick to start clapping in time with the music.
Celine changes cloths lot faster than CHER...(then again, she's a lot younger too lol)
The orchestra is WONDERFUL! There's a solo horn section segment with one of her vocalists doing
BLOOD SWEAT & TEARS 'Spinning Wheel' that's just great....lots of neat little things in this Show.
Did you hear about the HOLOGRAMS? Well I certainly did and they were one of the main things I was
looking forward to (there's two of 'em...) One of Celine, one with STEVIE WONDER sitting/playing
his piano.
Now I'm not giving anything away here...ROBIN LEACH wrote about them in great detail in his
www.vegasdeluxe.com column the day after the premier.
His description had me TOTALLY SIKED UP. Only problem...Robin probably had a great VIP seat down
in the center front section. I was in REAR ORCHESTRA 5 and the effect wasn't as effective from my view.
As advanced as holographic technology has come in the last 45 years...think PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
ride at Disneyland. Holograms are still subject to the way they're lit and their position to the viewer.
The closer and more centered you are, the better they look.
To help make these two effects seem more...LIVE, real video was shot for the Show of both Celine and
Stevie doing their songs and are projected Right and Left on large video screens in real time, just like
at a real concert. You see 'em close up AND on stage...it's great magic and the way Celine pulls it
off is LOTS OF FUN!
I had a problem with one part of the Show.
I read about this very emotional song she sings...She introduces it, says she finds it hard to sing or
sometimes even finish without tearing up. It's done in French which was MY main problem. I didn't
understand a single word and with NO explanation in re to the lyrics or what the song was about...
she totally lost me and it had no effect on me what so ever (other than frustration maybe) HOWEVER...
just the effect of the camera slowly zooooming in on Celine's face...her eyes filling up with tears and
then...that one drop falling on her cheek was all it took to effect the crowd.
CHEERS! and APPLAUD! as she dries her face after the song. AWWWWWW, SHOWBIZ.
Months back, if you heard anything about the theme of her new Show, it was to be about the movie
music of Hollywood. Well, that's changed quite a bit, lol.
There is a sequence of songs from the JAMES BOND movies, but that's about it.
There's a great little jazz/lounge show number with a trio from the orchestra, a 2 song tribute to
Michael Jackson with a KILLER medley from 3 terrific 'cello' musicians...VERY COOL!
When ya hear 'River Deep Mountain High' you're gettin' close to the end of the Show but HEY!...did I
mention the LAZERS?...yep, she's got LAZERS too!
Probably picked 'em up cheap on her European tour while she was away from Vegas.
(PINK FLOYD didn't need 'em any more...)
One more costume change and one last opportunity to clapith til you dropith with extended applause
before she come back out for her one song encore which is ?????????????
OH YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS...
that titanic little number, sung from the heart, that just goes on and on and on and on and...
Unlike 'A New Day' that I saw 3 times, I think once was enough for me on this one.
A GREAT SHOW, YOU'LL HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME...I certainly did!
There's a new exotic frozen daiquiri/frozen yogurt beverage bar
in the RIO. It's called 'EVENING CALL' www.eveningcall.com
I tend to prefer a simple, tasty, chocolate/vanilla swirl without all
the toppings...other folks prefer...THE WORKS!
Okay, poor segway I know leading into my thoughts on CELINE's
new Show at the Colosseum in Las Vegas but...unlike frozen yogurt
(and now I totally contradict myself...)
I prefer THE WORKS of 'A New Day' over this new residency 'CELINE'.
I liked all of the M&M's, Gummy Bears, Sprinkles, Hot Fudge and Caramel
Sauce that FRANKO DRAGONE created for her first Show. I like over the top
WOW! on my Vegas Shows.
That said, don't get the impression 'CELINE' doesn't impress...THE SHOW
IS VERY IMPRESSIVE and...for all you Celine fans out there that didn't care
for all the 'Cirque' style visuals in 'A New Day'...in this version, you've got
much more of just Celine and her music!
All the hype, all the WELCOME HOME CELINE, saturates Las Vegas. There's
an energy in town and the smell of MONEY!
Will Celine save Las Vegas?...probably not, but her presence will certainly be a
great boost to the economy. CET claims they'll pull in and 'extra' one million
bucks every night Celine performs.
Tuesday, March 22nd, 6pm and Caesars Palace is BUZZZIN'. The 'stand by' ticket
line is LONG, while other hopeful Celine fans wonder through the crown building in
front of the Colosseum stairs asking..."spare tickets?"..."anyone have spare tickets for sale?"
Celine Dion...the beloved, raining queen diva surpreme of Las Vegas is holding court for
the next 5 years. (the 2 additional years yet to be announced)
Folks from all over the world are here...dressed up and READY TO PARTY!
The lines going into the Colosseum went surprisingly well. Security was very tight. You go
through both the metal detector AND get 'wanded'. Purses are searched and (the usual)
NO CAMERAS.
Showtime on your ticket says 7:30 but the usual 7:50 is a bit more accurate.
If you remember, the Colosseum was built for Celine. The stage is as deep as it is wide
and ONLY 'A New Day' has ever used the entire stage and all it has to offer. Much to my
surprise, 'CELINE' only uses half of it for her new Show, just like ELTON, CHER, and BETTE did.
NOW IT'S SHOWTIME!
The visual of the stage is fit for a queen. The front curtain is all in red, with floral patterns projected
on it. Right and Left...the side walls are hung with 22 panels each (later to grow to 40 panels each)
and surround the Front Orchestra section down front.
Amber earth tones with cream colored flowers are projected on these, but as the Show unfolds, will
continue the colors and graphics from the giant LED backdrop. It's a great effect that wraps the
front section right into the Show...very cool.
The lights go down, the audience cheers, and the 'ever popular' video screen drops down, lol.
JAY LENO introduces...for the first time, a young..."up and comer, Celine Dion".
As these pre-show videos go, this one isn't all that bad. They seem to be getting more and more
the 'norm' these days in the Vegas Shows...kill off the length of a song before the 'real deal' starts.
It's back to the beginning with a montage of early performances, the end of 'A New Day'...some
touching family video and of course...THE TWINS (of course! lol)
Then the video screen goes up, the red curtain parts and there she is...standing in front of another
giant, glowing, white curtain.
She greets the crowd and talks for a little bit (and talking to the audience for 'just a little bit' shows
real control for her LOL!)
THEN...on her command...arms raised high...the curtain falls to the floor and dissolves into a churning,
pulsating cloud that quickly vanishes from the stage, revealing her 31 piece orchestra and the songs start!
The stage sets look GREAT! The orchestra sits on 5 platforms. The move, they split...they're at the front
of the stage, the back of the stage and sometimes...totally off the stage.
Light, color, and textures are everywhere. At one point, a crystal chandelier lowers over the stage...
it's quite a sight.
After 4 complete songs, it's time for a costume change. The red curtain draws...this time lit with images
of ancient memorial archways then...from the back of the audience Rear Orchestra, strolls a solo violinist.
A catchy little ditty, the audience is quick to start clapping in time with the music.
Celine changes cloths lot faster than CHER...(then again, she's a lot younger too lol)
The orchestra is WONDERFUL! There's a solo horn section segment with one of her vocalists doing
BLOOD SWEAT & TEARS 'Spinning Wheel' that's just great....lots of neat little things in this Show.
Did you hear about the HOLOGRAMS? Well I certainly did and they were one of the main things I was
looking forward to (there's two of 'em...) One of Celine, one with STEVIE WONDER sitting/playing
his piano.
Now I'm not giving anything away here...ROBIN LEACH wrote about them in great detail in his
www.vegasdeluxe.com column the day after the premier.
His description had me TOTALLY SIKED UP. Only problem...Robin probably had a great VIP seat down
in the center front section. I was in REAR ORCHESTRA 5 and the effect wasn't as effective from my view.
As advanced as holographic technology has come in the last 45 years...think PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
ride at Disneyland. Holograms are still subject to the way they're lit and their position to the viewer.
The closer and more centered you are, the better they look.
To help make these two effects seem more...LIVE, real video was shot for the Show of both Celine and
Stevie doing their songs and are projected Right and Left on large video screens in real time, just like
at a real concert. You see 'em close up AND on stage...it's great magic and the way Celine pulls it
off is LOTS OF FUN!
I had a problem with one part of the Show.
I read about this very emotional song she sings...She introduces it, says she finds it hard to sing or
sometimes even finish without tearing up. It's done in French which was MY main problem. I didn't
understand a single word and with NO explanation in re to the lyrics or what the song was about...
she totally lost me and it had no effect on me what so ever (other than frustration maybe) HOWEVER...
just the effect of the camera slowly zooooming in on Celine's face...her eyes filling up with tears and
then...that one drop falling on her cheek was all it took to effect the crowd.
CHEERS! and APPLAUD! as she dries her face after the song. AWWWWWW, SHOWBIZ.
Months back, if you heard anything about the theme of her new Show, it was to be about the movie
music of Hollywood. Well, that's changed quite a bit, lol.
There is a sequence of songs from the JAMES BOND movies, but that's about it.
There's a great little jazz/lounge show number with a trio from the orchestra, a 2 song tribute to
Michael Jackson with a KILLER medley from 3 terrific 'cello' musicians...VERY COOL!
When ya hear 'River Deep Mountain High' you're gettin' close to the end of the Show but HEY!...did I
mention the LAZERS?...yep, she's got LAZERS too!
Probably picked 'em up cheap on her European tour while she was away from Vegas.
(PINK FLOYD didn't need 'em any more...)
One more costume change and one last opportunity to clapith til you dropith with extended applause
before she come back out for her one song encore which is ?????????????
OH YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS...
that titanic little number, sung from the heart, that just goes on and on and on and on and...
Unlike 'A New Day' that I saw 3 times, I think once was enough for me on this one.
A GREAT SHOW, YOU'LL HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME...I certainly did!
