New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu



The Greatest Love of All

Tuesday, August 06, 2024 @ 7:30pm



Mayo Performing Arts Center (MPAC)
100 South Street, Morristown, NJ 07960

Whitney’s musical legacy is brought to life in this critically acclaimed tribute show described as “mind-blowingly spot on”.

Be stunned by the breathtaking vocals of Belinda Davids – a RiSA chart-topping artist in her home country of South Africa – who has performed alongside the likes of Keri Hilson, Keyshia Cole and Monica and featured on Fox TV’s ‘Showtime at the Apollo’ and BBC1 TV’s ‘Even Better Than the Real Thing’.

With the accompaniment of a live band, backing vocalists and choreographed dancers, plus state-of-the-art sound, lighting, vision and theatrical effects, this is a beautifully crafted tribute to one of the world’s most revered singers.

Belinda Davids

Born 1976, Belinda Davids started life in the small coastal town of Port Elizabeth in South Africa, where her musical family of seven children spent much of its time in church, singing and surrounded by gospel music. Enduring youth as a ‘coloured’ girl in a difficult, apartheid-ridden South Africa, Belinda found solace and empowerment in music – it was an equalizer, of sorts, for someone so devoid of equality in her life and surroundings, an expression and a pastime that needed no resources, no special education, no permissions, just her own God-given voice.

Her talent was glaringly apparent from an early age. Still to this day she has never had vocal training and is blessed with a 4-octave vocal range, putting her in the company of such vocal luminaries as Minnie Riperton, Mariah Carey, Christina Aguilera and Freddie Mercury. She began performing professionally at just 14 years of age and became technically adept at many genres but her true love has always been R&B; her childhood inspirations included Aretha Franklin, Anita Baker, Chaka Khan, Donny Hathaway, Michael Jackson and of course the one artist who has had the biggest impact on her life – Whitney Houston.

Belinda’s introduction to her soon-to-be idol was the track ‘Hold Me’ which Houston recorded with Teddy Pendergrass, and which became one of the first LPs Belinda ever owned. She was innately drawn to Houston’s musical style which resonated with the same modest familial values and gospel influences that pervaded her own upbringing.

Belinda sang Whitney’s music at every chance: at family gatherings, talent competitions and to friends whilst playing on the street. Like many young girls at that time her bedroom walls were plastered with posters and magazine cut-outs of the icon. Whitney’s influence was so strong it inspired everything from Belinda’s dress sense to her hairstyles. She included Whitney songs in every set she performed. As a young adult she joined the club circuit and was constantly compared to her icon.

In the mid 90’s Belinda caught the eye of record executives at Tusk Records and they worked together on the eponymous original album Belinda Davids. Three of the songs on this album, which Belinda also wrote, were released as singles: ‘This I Swear’‘This Is My Life’ and ‘We Go Together’. The latter was number one on the RiSA charts in South Africa for six weeks.

Belinda promoted her album all over South Africa for a number of years at various hotels, clubs & cabarets. She was the opening act for many international artists when they visited South Africa including Michael Jackson’s History tour, The Manhattans, The Temptations and Peaches and Herbs.

Years after her debut album, Belinda decided to travel abroad to expand her music career, which took her to Dubai, London and Hong Kong to perform in major hotels and clubs. The influence of Whitney was still undeniable; during a performance at a hotel in Hong Kong the similarity was such that the audience stopped the concert and demanded she sing acapella to prove she wasn’t lip-syncing.

After many years on the road Belinda settled in Los Angeles in 2009 to focus on getting her solo career back on track. In L.A she collaborated with R&B singer and producer Sam Salter on a couple of solo tracks, but she was mostly in demand as a backing vocalist and worked for some of the biggest names in Pop and R&B at the time, including Keyshia Cole, Monica, Johnny Gill, Kelly Price and Keri Hilson. Her incredible voice, versatility and model-good looks saw her become highly sought-after in this field; she made appearances on The Jay Leno Show and The George Lopez Show and mixed in celebrity circles.

But Belinda eventually chose to put her career on hold and return to her homeland in 2011 to be with family and concentrate on raising her two sons.

Shortly after however, in 2013, fate knocked. John Van Grinsven, creator and producer of Showtime Australia’s The Greatest Love of All, was on his final round of global auditions to find a star for the new production and Belinda managed to nab a last-minute audition. What had once been a hindrance for her was now a blessing – Belinda beat almost 15,000 other hopefuls to take the marquee role.

Touring began almost immediately and demand has grown exponentially ever since. The show has now performed across much of the globe including the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Germany, Russia, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Lithuania, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, UAE, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia and South Africa.

In 2017 Belinda’s profile reached new heights when she won the BBC’s Even Better Than the Real Thing TV talent program, hosted by Paddy McGuinness, and later that year gave a rousing performance of ‘I Will Always Love You’ on Fox TV’s iconic, long-running talent show Showtime at the Apollo, hosted by Steve Harvey. Both performances continue to gather millions of views online.

In the UK in 2018, Belinda reached another milestone as a performer when she debuted a special orchestral concert series of The Greatest Love of All and sang accompanied by The National Philharmonic Concert Orchestra in some of the continent’s most iconic venues, including the Hammersmith Apollo.

The COVID-19 pandemic which erupted in 2020 flat-lined most of Belinda’s touring schedule for the next two years, forcing the devastating postponement of major international tours and grounding her at home in South Africa where she was subject to some of the harshest lockdowns in the world. However, even under such circumstances, she still managed to hit another high – thanks to the support and determination of TV producers, Belinda travelled, under strict quarantine regulations, to the UK to compete in Britain’s Got Talent, where she progressed to the semi-finals and performed in front of the show’s first ever virtual audience. Her performance of ‘I Have Nothing’ was described as “utterly spellbinding” by judge Amanda Holden, and “absolutely electric” by judge David Walliams.

Against all odds, Belinda managed to return to the stage in late 2021 to complete a full national tour of the UK, despite much of the world still battling with the pandemic and government restrictions.

In 2022, she is thrilled to be on track to finally complete many of her major tours that had been postponed over the past two years and is scheduled to visit the USA, South Africa, Europe, Ireland, the UK and Russia.




For information on how your event can be listed, click here



 

Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month,
click here for info

FEATURED EVENTS

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


John

John Lee & Friends

Thursday, July 03, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music

Click here for full event listing

 

Blues

Blues People with Special Guest: Jeff Levine

Saturday, July 05, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music

Click here for full event listing

 

Straight

Straight No Chaser - Summer: The 90’s Part 2

Tuesday, July 08, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)
30 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631
category: music

Click here for full event listing

 

Frisson

Frisson Winds

Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music

Click here for full event listing

 

Three

Three American Troubadours: A Tribute to James Taylor, Carly Simon, and Carole King

Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Axelrod Performing Arts Center
100 Grant Avenue, Deal Park, NJ 07723
category: music

Click here for full event listing

 

More events

Event Listings are available for $10 and included with our banner ad packages




 

Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month,
click here for info


 

EVENT PREVIEWS

Jazz

Jazz Concert at Trenton City Museum will Feature the Joe Baione Vibraphone Experience

(TRENTON, NJ) -- Trenton City Museum will present a free jazz concert Friday, July 18, 2025 at the museum's Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park. Featuring world-renowned vibraphonist Joe Baione, the Joe Baione Vibraphone Experience is the first group to perform in a series of jazz events leading up to the museum's 2026 TRENTON MAKES JAZZ exhibition, in collaboration with the City of Trenton.



The

The Newton Theatre presents Tonight's the Night - a tribute to Rod Stewart

(NEWTON, NJ) -- Tonight's the Night - a tribute band that celebrates the music of Rod Stewart - will perform at The Newton Theatre on Saturday, September 27, 2025 at 8:00pm.



Hoboken's

Hoboken's Sinatra Park to Host Concert by Freedy Johnson and Karyn Kuhl and the Gang

(HOBOKEN, NJ) -- Local events organizer, Geri Fallo, who retired last year, is inviting you to celebrate with her, as she embraces new and exciting endeavors. Come enjoy a free evening of music in Hoboken's Sinatra Park (525 Sinatra Drive) on Thursday, July 17, 2025. The evening is presented by Mayor Ravi Bhalla, The Hoboken Division of Cultural Affairs, and Geri Fallo. The event is free, and music starts at 6:30pm. Come early for the best seating.



An

An Interview with Dan Kurtz of The New Deal

Formed in 1999, Toronto, Canada based trio The New Deal, is a pioneer in jam-based electronic music. The group was founded by remaining members Dan Kurtz (bass) and Jamie Shields (keys), along with Darren Shearer (drums) who left tND in 2011. Since its inception, tND has remained committed to its improvisational roots and has served as a model for other jamtronica bands bridging the gap between multiple music genres as well as the border between Canada and the United States.



Two

Two NJ Jazz Musicians Will Play with The Jazz Ambassadors in Morristown

Pianist Anthony Pocetti grew up in Hamilton, NJ, studying piano, "doing sort of traditional piano lessons. I have an uncle who was always encouraging me to get into the jazz thing. He gave me the (Miles Davis) Kind of Blue CD, and he knew that the jazz pianist Jim Ridl was living in Hamilton."




 

Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month,
click here for info