“Thank you, René-Charles. Thank you, Nelson. Thank you, Eddy. Thank you very much.”
As well as thanking her physician Dr Amanda Piquet and the documentary filmmaker, Irene Taylor Brodsky, Dion - who admitted it was the largest crowd she had been in front of in years - also had some kind words for her fans.
She continued: “And thanks to you, my fans, your presence in my journey has been a gift beyond measure. Your never-ending love and support for all the issues have delivered me to this moment.”
René-Charles Angelil and his mum, Celine Dion, attend the 'I Am: Celine Dion' New York special screening. Photo / Getty Images
Opening up about her condition, the My Heart Will Go On singer admitted she has compared herself to “an apple from a tree” in a powerful analogy.
She explained: “One of the stories you will hear from me in this movie as I was reading, learning about my condition.
“I compared myself — and I’m not saying this because we’re in New York — but I compared myself to an apple. Oh, it sounds like we made it up, but I did, and I was in Las Vegas.
“When I said to myself that I compared myself to an apple from a tree, [I said], ‘I don’t want you [fans] to wait in line anymore if I don’t have any shiny apples for you.’
“So a couple of days ago, I saw a message from a fan and it said, ‘We’re not here for the apple. We’re here for the truth.’ "
