Céline Dion fans gather in Paris as singer prepares for sold-out comeback shows

More than 30,000 due to attend Canadian artist’s opener at Plenitude arena, as thousands without tickets plan Friday night karaoke

More than 30,000 Céline Dion fans have gathered in Paris for the Canadian singer’s long-awaited return to performing on Saturday night, four years after she revealed her diagnosis of stiff person syndrome, a rare neurological condition.

Thousands more people without tickets have flocked to a series of giant karaoke events across France to belt out Dion’s famous power ballads, in celebration of the star’s health stabilising enough for her to return to the stage.