Taking Chances Tour - Background

Background

The show, directed by Jamie King (famously known for his work with Madonna), combined Dion's performances with color, fashion and dance. Céline Dion performed some of her biggest hits, along with songs from her latest English album Taking Chances. The two hour show was divided into four segments: soul, rock, Middle-Eastern and, fashion-victim. Dion was supported by eight dancers (4 male and 4 female). Rehearsals took place in December 2007 in Primm, Nevada and MGM Grand Garden Arena.

The tour setup included about twenty LED screens, among them one that orbited above the stage, plus conveyor belts and elevators. Dion pre-recorded a selection of videos for her show. The introduction video showed her driving a car at high-speed, set to a remix of "I Drove All Night" as the beginning of her concert. There have been 2 versions of the introduction video: The first version showed footage of Dion's career, and was seen in all South Africa, Asia, Australia, and some European dates before the second version, which was footage from cities Dion visited during the tour. As the tour went on, the intro video shaped up and more cities ended up being added. Another video showed the singer dressed in varying fashions over the years, with the "My Heart Will Go On" remix in the background.

Jamie King joined the tour on May 2, 2008 in Manchester, England. Before that date, the show wasn't on a central stage (except in Japan) for logistics reasons. After two and a half months, Dion rehearsed again to perfect the show for the "in the round" setup. Because of Dion's bilingual career and the restrictions of certain arenas and stadiums on the tour, King had to direct and choreograph three separate shows. One show featured a set-list mostly of English language songs, and was performed in-the-round using the full system of mobile screens, elevators, and conveyor belts. A second show also featured the center stage arrangement, but included about ten French language songs for performances in Francophone countries. A third, less complex show was used where the center stage arrangement would not fit into the venue or where it would be impractical to transport the stage. An end stage setup was used in these cases, and featured a massive central video screen and a lighting system that engulfed the stage in brilliant blue and red from above on all three sides. Before the European leg, the central and end stage setups were redone, changing lights and cues, in order for the three separate shows to fit in these two stages. Dion premiered new costumes when the European tour began.

Dion and her band rehearsed about 60 tracks, both in English and French. Among those, about 27 songs were performed in each show, according to each visited market. "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" was performed throughout the whole tour. It is the best-selling French-language single of all time, and one of the only French songs in music history to achieve chart success in many non-Francophone countries. The singer also performed several cover songs, including: James Brown's "I Got the Feelin'" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World," and Queen's "We Will Rock You" and "The Show Must Go On" (although the last two were dropped starting with the October 27 Winnipeg show). She also performed Kiki Dee's "I've Got the Music in Me" but the song was removed after concerts in South Korea.

This was Dion's second in the round concert and her very first world tour since her 1998-1999 Let's Talk About Love Tour.