Celine Dion returns to the stage amid stiff-person syndrome battle
Céline Dion attends the ‘I Am: Celine Dion’ New York special screening at Alice Tully Hall on June 17, 2024, in New York City. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
Celine Dion’s comeback is in full swing.
The iconic singer returned to the stage and kicked off a 26-show run in Paris over the weekend, marking six years since her last live performance and four years since she publicly announced she has stiff-person syndrome.
Dion performed to sold-out crowds on Saturday at Plenitude Arena, previously Paris La Défense Arena, in Nanterre, France, belting out both French and English songs from her extensive catalog.
“What an incredible opening night! Still taking it all in,” Dion said in an Instagram post afterward.
Footage from the concert shows Celine telling the cheering crowd, “I made a promise to come back, to be back onstage. Here I am.”
The 58-year-old singer will perform until mid-October and then take a break before resuming performances in May 2027.
In December 2022, Dion announced publicly that she had been diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a rare neurological disease. She gave fans an inside look at what she was going through in her documentary, I Am: Celine Dion.
Dolly Parton performs live onstage at the U.K. Country Music Festival, April 1, 1976. (Andrew Putler/Redferns/Getty Images)
Celebrities are offering their condolences following the death of country music superstar Dolly Parton, who died Tuesday at the age of 80.
Lily Tomlin, Parton’s longtime friend and one of her co-stars in the 1980 hit comedy 9 to 5, wrote on Instagram, “No words…” alongside a broken heart emoji.
The movie was Parton’s big-screen debut, and she wrote and performed the film’s chart-topping, Grammy-winning theme song.
Tomlin said at the 16th annual Governors Awards in 2025 that the song “9 to 5” was “so much bigger than any singular theme song on a movie soundtrack,” saying it “became an anthem for our culture of the time.”
She added at the time that Parton’s “humanitarian achievements are as staggering as her formidable singing career” and called her “one of the few people who remains in this world that everyone loves and respects.”
Country singer Kacey Musgraves wrote on social media on Tuesday, “This really really hurts.”
“The world feels a lot less sparkly all of a sudden,” Musgraves said. “So glad she’s with her Carl Dean.”
Dean, who was Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, died last year at the age of 82.
Parton’s fellow country singer and actress Reba McEntire wrote on Instagram, “Dolly, thank you for all the wonderful things you did for us here on earth. Your love, your music and you gave so much with your huge huge heart.”
“There will never ever be another you. We will remember and cherish every memory and every note you ever played and sang,” she continued. “I’ll never forget the first time I met you and I’ll never forget our last conversation. I hold it with love in my heart.”
The Jacksons called Parton a “true trailblazer” in a statement on Instagram.
“Through her extraordinary talent, kindness and generosity, she opened doors and inspired generations around the world. We share this special memory from 1977, when we had the honor of meeting Dolly in England on the same day we also met Queen Elizabeth II,” the Jacksons wrote alongside a carousel of images. “Thank you, Dolly, for the music, the joy and the light you shared with us all.”
“Our prayers are with Dolly’s family, friends and everyone whose life she touched. … Your beautiful spirit and remarkable legacy will live on forever,” the Jacksons said.
Khloe Kardashian, a Parton superfan, wrote in an Instagram Story, “Some people are so extraordinary, their existence feels almost impossible. Dolly was one of those people.”
“A once-in-a-lifetime soul. A woman whose light, heart, talent and humanity changed this world forever,” Kardashian wrote. “To have admired her was a gift. To have met her, spent time in her presence, and somehow been lucky enough that Dolly Parton knew my name… I will never have words big enough for what that means to me.”
“What an astronomical human being. What a legacy. What a loss,” she added. “There will never be another Dolly.
Singer Kelly Clarkson also honored the legendary singer, writing on social media that Parton “had a way of making everyone feel special, and seen, and welcomed, and as if you were old friends.”
“I will miss her heart and her voice as I am sure millions will,” Clarkson said. “What an incredible gift and talent she was and still is with an amazing catalogue of art she has left behind for all of us.”
Jack White of The White Stripes, who covered Parton’s hit song “Jolene” in 2000, posted a photo of Parton on Instagram with the caption, “Instant Sainthood.”
Actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth wrote on Instagram that she was “heartbroken,” calling Parton her “ultimate inspiration.”
“I met Dolly on several occasions and she always made me feel like one of her own. She even agreed to sing with me on one of my records,” Chenoweth said. “The world has lost one of the best but I know we will never forget her because she is impossible to forget. I love you Dolly and I will ALWAYS love you.”
The Muppets also honored the iconic performer, saying in a statement on Facebook, “There will never be another quite like Dolly Parton. She was the ultimate singer, songwriter, actress, performer, and philanthropist. She filled the world with light and we are so grateful for every second we got to spend with her onstage and off.”
Actress Octavia Spencer called Parton “a gift to the world,” writing on social media, “[Y]our voice, your philanthropic heart, and warmth made us … feel seen and that the world was a pretty decent place.”
Actor Colman Domingo wrote on social media, “Dolly taught us that you can be anything and do anything and to do it with kindness. What a light. We are all grateful that we lived in a time of Dolly Parton. We will always love her.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
All eight episodes of the Emmy-winning drama’s fifth and final season are now streaming on Hulu. The season takes place over the course of one day in the titular Chicago restaurant, where everything that could possibly go wrong does — and then some. Adding to the pressure is the threat of imminent closure by The Bear’s chief investor, Olivier Platt’s Uncle Jimmy.
“I think it makes so much sense for everybody to throw themselves into this last service, to be existing with these characters in real time. … It amps everything up, you know?” Jeremy Allen White, who plays Carmy Berzatto, told ABC Audio.
“There’s more struggle, there’s more urgency, time is important, stakes rise, and so yeah, I thought structuring the last season this way was just a great, great idea, and ended up being really effective.”
The season also picks up right after Carmy’s season 4 finale decision to leave The Bear in the hands of Sydney, Natalie and Richie. That means Ayo Edebiri [EYE-oh eh-deh-BEE-ree]’s Sydney finds herself in charge in the most stressful of circumstances, before finally breaking down.
“It’s a lot to get to do inside and have it build,” she told ABC Audio. “And so when it does come out in those physical moments, that’s always really fun for me. I feel like my body is, like, Laffy Taffy.”
As for Ebon [EH-ben] Moss-Bachrach’s front-of-house manager Richie, he refuses to give up and goes overboard in trying to motivate the staff to keep going.
“It is a very aggressive optimism, maybe, I would say,” he laughs. “It feels nice to play someone who has that generosity, who wants to take care of everyone.”
Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Hulu.
Mark Ballas stars in ‘Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro.’ (Disney/Maarten De Boer)
It’s time to head back to the ballroom for the new Dancing with the Stars spinoff, The Next Pro.
The brand-new series, which premieres Monday night on ABC, follows young professional dancers competing for the chance to become a pro on Dancing with the Stars.
Mark Ballas serves as a judge on the new series. He caught up with ABC Audio on the red carpet of the 2026 Disney Upfront, where he spilled details on what fans can expect.
“It’s a fascinating show, because it feels like Dancing with the Stars, which it kind of is, but it’s also very different because of the format,” Ballas said. “We’re looking for a pro that’s gonna take on the role of being a pro on Dancing with the Stars. Which is very complex, it’s very nuanced.”
How exactly does The Next Pro do this? Ballas said “the show did a really great job of setting up challenges for these dancers.”
“Whether it’s from choreographing, group work, chemistry, teaching challenges, these are the things that you face as a pro on Dancing with the Stars,” Ballas said.
He isn’t the only judge. His mother, Shirley Ballas, sits beside him to help determine who has what it takes.
“My mother is one of the most elite Latin American dance coaches in the world,” Ballas said. “Having her level of expertise on the panel is always an asset. No one knows the craft more than her.”
That being said, Ballas teased they approached the job in different ways.
“She’s been on the side as a judge, and I’ve always been on side as the pro,” Ballas said. “We had a couple of disagreements out in the field … but we also agreed a lot. She’s very good at what she does, she’s very direct. And when you’re improving on being a professional in this field, you need that.”
