Celine Dion Cancels Rest of World Tour Over Medical Condition

FILE PHOTO: Singer Celine Dion and Pepe Munoz arrive to attend the Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2019/20 collection show by designer Alexandre Vauthier in Paris, France, July 2, 2019. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Singer Celine Dion and Pepe Munoz arrive to attend the Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2019/20 collection show by designer Alexandre Vauthier in Paris, France, July 2, 2019. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo
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Celine Dion Cancels Rest of World Tour Over Medical Condition

FILE PHOTO: Singer Celine Dion and Pepe Munoz arrive to attend the Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2019/20 collection show by designer Alexandre Vauthier in Paris, France, July 2, 2019. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Singer Celine Dion and Pepe Munoz arrive to attend the Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2019/20 collection show by designer Alexandre Vauthier in Paris, France, July 2, 2019. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo

Canadian pop singer Celine Dion announced on Friday that she was canceling the European stretch of her world tour, scheduled to resume this summer, due to a medical condition that makes it difficult for her to perform, Reuters reported.

The announcement comes four months after the 55-year-old Quebecoise singer said she was diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome that causes muscle spasms. At the time, the disorder forced her to postpone some European shows on her "Courage World Tour."

“I’m so sorry to disappoint all of you once again," the singer - best known for the "Titanic" movie theme song "My Heart Will Go On" - wrote on Instagram on Friday morning.

"I’m working really hard to build back my strength, but touring can be very difficult even when you’re 100%."

The tour's European stretch consisted of 42 shows in seven cities from late August to early October and another 17 cities during the spring of 2024. Dion said ticket holders would receive refunds.

Stiff-person syndrome causes muscle rigidity and increased sensitivity to sound, touch and emotional stimuli that can trigger spasms. The condition led the multiple Grammy winner to postpone her Las Vegas residency in October 2021.

The tour - her first in the United States in 10 years - kicked off in Quebec City in September 2019. It was accompanied by the release of her latest album "Courage."

The singer said the album’s title was inspired by the 2016 death from throat cancer of her husband and manager Rene Angelil. The couple had three children.



‘Cute and Murderous’: How Squid Game’s Iconic Killer Doll Came to Life 

Players take part in the Red Light, Green Light game at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium ahead of the release of the Netflix series Squid Game: Season 2 on December 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
Players take part in the Red Light, Green Light game at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium ahead of the release of the Netflix series Squid Game: Season 2 on December 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
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‘Cute and Murderous’: How Squid Game’s Iconic Killer Doll Came to Life 

Players take part in the Red Light, Green Light game at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium ahead of the release of the Netflix series Squid Game: Season 2 on December 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
Players take part in the Red Light, Green Light game at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium ahead of the release of the Netflix series Squid Game: Season 2 on December 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 22, 2024. (Reuters)

While the second season of "Squid Game" has new plot twists, one element of the Netflix mega-hit series where contestants down on their luck risk their lives to play children's games for the chance of winning cash prizes, has remained constant.

That is Young-hee, an innocent-looking robotic doll who in fact has a deadly role in the South Korean-made television series to find contestants to gun down playing the game "Red Light, Green Light" if she spots them moving.

Young-hee, who is clad in a simple orange dress and a hair clip, has become a viral meme on social media and the centerpiece of the streaming giant's promotional campaign.

Chae Kyoung-sun, the production designer for "Squid Game", said the doll's appearance had been partly inspired by her own daughter.

"My daughter had a bowl cut for a long time which was very cute so I decided to draw a very short bang," Chae told Reuters.

"Her eyes are a little crazy. She's a killing machine and the movement of her eyes had to be easy to see, so we made her eyes quite big."

The initial inspiration for Young-hee came from a girl of the same name on the cover of old primary school textbooks in South Korea, though the killer doll was initially conceived as genderless, Chae said.

The first season of "Squid Game" became the most-watched show on the streaming platform and expectations were high for the second season to replicate the success.

The new season of the dystopian thriller, released on Dec. 26, also broke a record as the most-watched show in its premiere week on the streaming platform, with 68 million views, according to Netflix.

The streaming giant said on Tuesday it gained a record 18.9 million subscribers in its fourth quarter thanks in part to the second season of Squid Game.

In 2023, Netflix announced a $2.5 billion investment in South Korea to produce Korean TV series, movies and unscripted shows.

Asked about the success of the show and this particular character, Chae put it down to their unorthodox nature.

"How does this cute kid suddenly turn into a killing machine? - I think the creation of the 'Squid Game' world by adopting unpredictable concepts and methods resonated with young people looking for fresh things," she said.

At the end of the second season, viewers also get a glimpse of Chul-su, a male doll set to appear in the next season alongside Young-hee that was originally envisaged for the first series.

"When they said there will be a second season and that Chul-su would appear, I brought back the drawings I had of Chul-su for the first season," Chae said.

"Think of it as a friend, a partner," she said.

The third and final season of Squid Game is set to be released later this year.