Celine Dion Is Back: 9 Million Want Tickets
Welcome back to Learn English with Podcasts! Sarah, what would you do if 9 million people wanted tickets to your show, but you only had 480,000 seats?欢迎回到 Learn English with Podcasts！Sarah，如果有900万人想买你演出的票，但你只有48万个座位，你会怎么办？
I would panic. That is almost 20 people fighting for every seat. Whose show is this crazy?我会慌。每张票差不多有20个人抢。这是谁的演出，这么疯狂？
Celine Dion. The voice behind My Heart Will Go On, from the movie Titanic. She is 58 years old now.席琳·迪翁。就是电影《泰坦尼克号》主题曲《我心永恒》背后的声音。她现在58岁了。
Oh, the Queen. I grew up with that song. But she has been quiet for years, right?哦，那位天后。我是听着那首歌长大的。但她已经安静很多年了吧？
Almost 6 years. No full concert since the end of 2020. Last week in Paris, she finally came back, with a full 2.5-hour show.将近6年。从2020年底起就没开过完整演唱会。上周在巴黎，她终于回来了，带来一场完整的两个半小时演出。
6 years away, then 2.5 hours on stage? That is brave. What stopped her for so long?离开6年，一回来就唱两个半小时？真勇敢。这么久她为什么停下来？
Health. In 2022, she told the world she has stiff-person syndrome. It is a rare nerve illness. Her muscles tighten and shake without control.健康原因。2022年，她告诉全世界自己得了僵人综合征。这是一种罕见的神经疾病。她的肌肉会不受控制地收紧和痉挛。
That sounds painful. Can she still walk and sing with that?听起来很疼。那她还能走路和唱歌吗？
Sometimes walking is hard. Singing the old way is hard too. She canceled many shows. She worked with doctors every day, just to get back on stage.有时候走路都困难。像以前那样唱歌也很难。她取消了很多演出。每天和医生一起训练，只为重返舞台。
And now she is back in Paris. Where exactly? A big tour around the world?现在她在巴黎复出了。具体在哪儿？是全球巡演吗？
No, this is special. It is a residency. That means all the shows stay in one place, the arena in Paris. No traveling city to city.不，这次很特别。是驻场演出。意思是所有场次都在同一个地方，巴黎的那个竞技场。不用一座城市一座城市跑。
Ah, a residency is smarter for her health. How many shows in total?啊，驻场对她的身体更友好。一共多少场？
26 shows in total. The first 16 run from September 12 to October this year. Then 10 more next May, from May 8 to May 29.一共26场。前16场是今年9月12日到10月。再加10场在明年5月，从5月8日到5月29日。
That is called the biggest concert event in French history? 26 shows in one arena, wow.这被称为法国历史上规模最大的演唱会？在一个场馆连开26场，哇。
Yes. And no back-to-back nights. Shows are only on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. That gives her body time to rest between shows.是的。而且没有连开。演出只在每周三、周五和周六。这样她的身体在两场之间有时间恢复。
Very human plan. So how was the first night? Was her voice okay?很人性化的安排。那首演当晚怎么样？她嗓音还好吗？
At the start, yes, a little shaky. She was so emotional. She sang 27 songs in English and French. After the first few songs, she took control of the whole room.开场时，是的，有点抖。她太激动了。她唱了27首英法语歌曲。唱完前面几首，她就掌控了全场。
27 songs in one night, after 6 years away. Did she cry?离开6年，一晚唱27首。她哭了吗？
Many times. She said, I promised myself I would not cry. These are tears of joy. The fans cried with her.哭了好几次。她说，我答应自己不哭的。这是喜悦的泪水。粉丝和她一起哭。
I can picture it. Loyal fans waited outside her hotel for days, right? Some flew across the world just to see her.我能想象那个画面。忠实粉丝在她酒店门口等了好几天吧？有人飞越大半个地球只为见她。
Exactly. And Paris went crazy for her. The city lit the Olympic flame again in the garden. They put her name on a big balloon. They even renamed a metro station Celine Station for the concerts.没错。整个巴黎都为她疯狂。城市在花园里重新点燃奥运圣火。在大气球上投影她的名字。甚至把演唱会附近的地铁站临时改名叫席琳站。
A metro station with your name? That is bigger than a gold medal. Now tell me about the tickets. 9 million people, really?地铁站用你的名字？这比金牌还厉害。跟我说说抢票的事。真有900万人吗？
Really. About 9 million people joined the lottery system to try to buy tickets. Only 480,000 tickets for the first 16 shows. They sold out in 4 days.真的。约900万人通过抽签系统抢票。前16场只有48万张票。4天就抢光了。
So less than 1 in 18 got a ticket. No wonder the ticket websites crashed many times. Too much traffic.所以不到十八分之一的人能抢到。难怪票务网站瘫痪了好几次。流量太大了。
Right. It set a record for this kind of concert sale. Everyone in France seems to be talking about one question, who got a ticket, and who did not.对。这创下了这类演唱会售票纪录。全法国好像都在聊一个问题，谁抢到了票，谁没抢到。
Okay, she sings, fans cry, tickets crash websites. But I heard something even bigger, about money and the whole country?好，她唱歌，粉丝哭，网站瘫痪。但我听说还有更大的事，和钱、和整个国家有关？
Yes. Reports say her Paris shows may bring 1 billion euros to France. That is about 7.7 billion yuan. More than stars like Beyonce ever brought.是的。有报道说她巴黎的演出可能给法国带来10亿欧元。约合77亿元人民币。比碧昂丝这些歌手带来的都多。
1 billion euros from singing? That equals one fifth of the Paris Olympics income. One singer, one fifth of the Olympics?靠唱歌带来10亿欧元？相当于巴黎奥运会收益的五分之一。一位歌手，奥运会的五分之一？
That is what the media says. One magazine even put her photo on the cover and asked, will Celine Dion save the 2027 budget?媒体就是这么说的。一家杂志甚至把她照片放上封面，问，席琳·迪翁会拯救2027年的预算吗？
From hospital room to saving the national budget. What a comeback story. But Mike, she is already a legend, right? Two hundred million albums?从病房到拯救国家预算。多么传奇的复出。但Mike，她本来就是传奇吧？两亿张专辑？
Over 200 million albums around the world. Two albums each sold over 30 million copies. 5 Grammy Awards, 12 World Music Awards, 21 Juno Awards from Canada.全球超过两亿张专辑。其中两张各卖了3000多万张。5座格莱美、12座世界音乐奖、21座加拿大朱诺奖。
And in China, many people know her from Titanic, and from the 2013 Spring Festival Gala, when she sang Jasmine Flower with Song Zuying.在中国，很多人因为《泰坦尼克号》认识她，还因为2013年春晚，她和宋祖英合唱《茉莉花》。
Right. So this comeback is not just a concert. For many fans, it is like seeing an old friend win against a hard illness, step by step.对。所以这次复出不只是一场演唱会。对很多粉丝来说，就像看着一位老朋友一步步战胜重病。
You know what touches me most? She cannot control her muscles, yet she controlled a 2.5-hour night. The woman who sometimes cannot walk easily made 9 million people run for tickets.你知道最打动我的是什么吗？她控制不了自己的肌肉，却掌控了两个半小时的夜晚。这位有时走路都困难的女人，让900万人为票奔跑。
That is the perfect line to end today. Thanks for listening to Learn English with Podcasts. Did Celine's story remind you of someone who never gave up?这句总结太完美了。感谢收听今天的 Learn English with Podcasts。席琳的故事让你想起了哪个永不放弃的人？
Share this episode with them. Maybe listen to My Heart Will Go On together tonight. See you next time.把这期分享给那个人吧。今晚可以一起听听《我心永恒》。下期再见。