Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Celine succeeding Celine?

Who will replace Celine Dion as the megaheadliner at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace when the superstar exits Dec. 15?

Among the many options that have been rumored so far, no one has mentioned an intriguing possibility - Celine Dion.

If it is true that almost every show has been sold out for four years, surely an offer could be made that she couldn't refuse - even though she seems adamant about quitting the lucrative arrangement to have another child.

Why not take off a year or two, do the family thing and come back? Make sure the children have a secure future and fans are happy.

"You could always say that option is open," said John Meglen, president and co-chief executive of AEG Live/Concerts West, the company that leases and manages the Colosseum. "I would love to see her back. I hate to see this come to an end. It's been so successful and Celine and Rene (her husband, Rene Angelil) and their entire organization have been such a pleasure to work with.

"It's going to be a very, very sad day come Dec. 15. Would we love to see her more, of course we would."

But, he says, he isn't in a position to push her to change her mind. "We're just extremely grateful for everything," Meglen said.

Regardless of what happens when Dion gives her final performance, it's a safe bet that the Colosseum will continue to be home to megastars.

Elton John is signed through 2008.

Jerry Seinfeld probably can keep coming back to the 4,000-seat venue several weeks a year for as long as he likes.

But ultimately, who can replace Dion?

"A New Day ..." has the feel of a Cirque du Soleil production - because it was created by former Cirque genius Franco Dragone ("O" and "Mystere") - but whatever the second act is, it won't be Cirque.

Nor will it be a Broadway show.

"We're about headliners. We're about bringing in the greatest names - after all, what greater name do you have than Caesars Palace? And we want to keep the level of stars up there," Meglen said.

"We're about taking superstars and creating a show that cannot tour and that people can't see anywhere else and, if possible, a star they can't see anywhere else."

Dion will be hard to replace. She was the first to occupy the $95 million showroom, which was the first of several multimillion-dollar showrooms built in recent years ($135 million for "Ka" and $100 million each for "Love" and "Le Reve").

Whether it's Cher, Bette Midler or someone else, Meglen expects to make an announcement in a couple of months.

"Naturally we're keeping all options open," Meglen said. "But we do want to find a resident artist - or artists, plural - that can fill the remaining weeks that Elton's not playing. We hope Jerry Seinfeld will continue to come out and play his few weeks a year. We're going to continue with the Comedy Festival, that's been doing great, and we want to continue to build on that."

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