New Quebec arrangement OK with Dion's manager
QUEBEC -- A recount in the turf battle of the Plains of Abraham -- set off when Celine Dion's husband-manager Rene Angelil objected that Paul McCartney would have 250,000 spectators for his free concert July 20 and Celine would only have 100,000 for her Aug. 22 performance -- has resulted in a tie.
Each show now has room for about 200,000 spectators.
Daniel Gelinas, who heads the group that is managing festivities marking Quebec City's 400th birthday, told reporters Tuesday that calculating three persons a square metre, and expanding the site, there will be room for 170,000 to 200,000 at the natural amphitheatre where the McCartney show was originally planned.
Using the same calculation, 350,000 could squeeze into the site planned for Dion's show. But he admitted not all those places have a good view.
So in addition to the 100,000 holders of free tickets, who will have reserved places, Gelinas says another 100,000 to 120,000 could see Dion's show.
Gelinas phoned Angelil in France Tuesday and reported that Dion's manager is "very, very happy" with the new arrangement.
The battle over concert sites was settled Monday.
McCartney will play on July 20 in the natural amphitheatre behind the city's historic armoury, which burned to a shell this winter. That site, where French crooner Charles Aznavour played Sunday to a capacity audience of between 75,000 and 80,000 spectators, is not available to Dion because on Aug. 22 -- when she will hold her show -- a 19th-century golf course will be recreated on the hilly site.
Dion's show will take place in an open field about three kilometres to the west of the McCartney site.
She announced earlier this year she would take a break from her hometown run of shows at Montreal's Bell Centre, where tickets cost as much as $1,100, to give a free concert on the Plains of Abraham, as her gift for Quebec City's 400th birthday.
Dion will sing for about 20 minutes, but her show will also include Quebec performers Garou, Claude Dubois, Marc Dupre, Jean-Pierre Ferland and the Dion family.
No tickets are needed for McCartney's free concert.
In a statement, McCartney said music is a fantastic way to celebrate Quebec City's founding 400 years ago.
"It's a universal language that can bring everybody together," he said. "Our two countries have close ties that remain strong to this day."
McCartney has never performed in Quebec City. His old group, The Beatles, played the Forum in Montreal in 1964.
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