By Craig T. Kojima, Star-Bulletin
Celine Dion performed beautifully at
Aloha Stadium last night.
Dion surpasses
By John Berger
all expectations
Special to the Star-BulletinANY doubts about Celine Dion's ability to draw a crowd or rock the house as a stadium concert act in Hawaii were laid to rest last night. Aloha Stadium was comfortably full. The weather was perfect. Dion's performance eclipsed her show here a year ago in every way possible.
What examples? A questionable remake or two was gone. Several recent hits and album tracks were added. The video screens added to Dion's performance without blocking the view of the stage. The lighting sequences were more effective. The concert sound was clear even on the loudest numbers. The encores were staged and timed much more reasonably than a year ago. The show was about five minutes longer than at the Blaisdell Arena last February but moved more smoothly.
Dion's comments during the show also seemed more spontaneous last night -- especially when she digressed and began talking about golf. She looked a bit tired, and perhaps tanned to the verge of sunburn after a week or so of pre-concert relaxation here, but sounded well rested and ready to work. Work she did. No question about it, she's an incredible vocalist.
Dion moves more like a rock star than a conventional female pop singer. A tight gray jumpsuit accented her movements and lithe rocker-style poses for most of the night. She seemed delighted and quite appreciative of the crowd's response.
"Because You Loved Me" became a community sing just as it did a year ago; the audience participation seemed more natural and spontaneous last night.Dion displayed her acting skills with "Tell Him." The song is a duet with Barbra Streisand (who is seen on the video screens). Dion responded visually while Streisand sang. Her ability to react without overacting added to the drama of the song; so did the work of the video crew.
Dion opened with "Let's Talk About Love," the title song of her 1996 multi-platinum album. She closed the night, of course, with "My Heart Will Go On (Love Theme From 'Titanic')." It is still a glorious signature for her. Other familiar tunes from her discography were "Declaration of Love," "The Power of Love" and "Love Can Move Mountains."
"Beauty And The Beast" and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" were two surprising omissions. However, Dion's choice of alternative material was interesting.
A mini-set of four "unplugged" love songs paid homage to Roberta Flack, the Beatles, Eric Clapton and Frank Sinatra. A subsequent disco segment found her wearing a Travolta-style white suit and dancing as Travolta did in "Saturday Night Fever." That provided the lead-in to a video duet with the Bee Gees and a smooth return to the present.
All things considered Celine Dion delivered a performance to equal Janet Jackson's techno extravaganza at the stadium last month -- and she did it all absolutely 100% G-rated!
Keali'i Reichel made his second annual appearance as Dion's opening act in Honolulu. This time he opened with his popular version of the Beatles' "In My Life," included several of his signature songs, and previewed a song from his next album. It was wonderful to enjoy his music in such a setting once again.
