Celine Takes a Sickie

10/05/2007 8:44 AM, E! Online


A New Day...is taking a sick day. Or two.

Celine Dion has been forced to cancel two performances of her Vegas spectacular this week, after being diagnosed with a viral infection.

"Celine is fighting a viral infection, which causes fever, muscle cramps, dehydration and a number of other discomforts," states a posting on her official Website. "She is on doctor's orders to rest and take in plenty of fluids in order to recover from the infection."

The 39-year-old French-Canadian chanteuse was forced to nix Thursday and Friday night's gigs as a result of the diagnosis.

It's not the first time Dion has been sidelined with a medical ailment. Last November, the Titanic-voiced singer canceled five shows due to mycoplasma bronchitis, a highly contagious respiratory infection, and in May 2006 she canceled a week's worth of gigs after contracting a rare ear disease called labyrinthitis.

Disappointed fans will be able to refund their tickets or exchange them for a later date...though not that much later.

Dion's final New Day performance will take place at the Caesar's Palace Colosseum, created in her honor, on Dec. 15 of this year. The show first opened in March 2003. She will be succeeded as the hotel's resident entertainer by Bette Midler, who begins her two-year engagement on Feb. 15.

The Grammy winner kicks off a new tour of South Africa and Europe on Feb. 14 in Johannesburg, in support of her new album, Taking Chances, due out Nov. 13.