CANADIAN pop superstar Celine Dion performed on the Chinese mainland for the first time at the 50,000-seat Shanghai Stadium Friday evening.

Although a Beijing concert had been canceled, the Shanghai performance was a big success.

The slim diva was suited in leather during the 90-minute concert to protect her just-recovered voice in this early spring weather.

Dion opened the show with “Drove All Night,” “The Power of Love,” “Because You Love Me,” which were popular with the Chinese audience.

She also sang “My Love” from her latest album, “Taking Chances,” which was released last November. A number of French songs was followed by rock songs.

Finally, Dion performed two well-known songs by English rock band Queen, “We Will Rock You,” “The Show Must Go On” and concluded with one of her best-known songs, “My Heart Will Go On,” from the 1997 blockbuster film “Titanic.”

The Shanghai concert was part of the artist’s “Taking Chances” world tour. Dubbed “the best selling female artist in the world,” Dion has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide, according to figures released by her record company Sony BMG.

She first gained international recognition in the 1980s after she won the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest.

She achieved worldwide success with the release of several English and French albums.

At the height of her success in 1999, Dion announced a temporary withdrawal from entertainment to start a family and enjoy life. Her music has been influenced by genres ranging from pop, soul, and rock to classical and gospel.

(SD-Agencies)