MUSIC

Whitney Houston’s musical legacy is brought to life at Dubai Opera

Meet the woman starring as Whitney Houston in the upcoming Dubai Opera show

G

et ready for the incredible vocals of Belinda Davids – a RiSA charttopping artist in her home country of South Africa – who has been 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-theart sound, lighting, vision and theatrical effects, The

Greatest Love of All is a beautifully crafted tribute to one of the world’s most revered singers. We caught up with Belinda ahead of her performance at Dubai Opera this month…

Is it true that it was listening to Whitney’s songs that taught you how to sing?

I could sing since I was five, but I had never taken any lessons until I heard

Whitney Houston perform a song with Teddy Pendergrass called Hold

Me. That’s when I knew that I wanted to sing like her and I never stopped listening to her. Even today, while I perform her music so frequently, I still listen to her.

So you were a fan of the singer before you ‘played’ her?

I have loved her and have been a fan of her from the moment I can remember. I was a huge fan of her because she had such a unique and incredible talent, she was inspiring in the true sense of the word.

How did you feel when you were given this role?

At first I was very excited and then I was scared. I realised that I had to do everything in my power to portray this woman to the best of my ability, which was quite frightening because portraying Whitney Houston you have to be just as good. You can be nothing less.

What’s your favourite song to sing?

I think my favourite song to sing in the show would be I Have Nothing.

It’s really hard to choose a favourite song when all of her songs are so relatable, but that is a very powerful and dramatic song to sing on stage.

What is your greatest love of all?

A few things really: firstly my children, and then finding myself. Finding who I really am and loving myself for who I really am is The Greatest Love of

All for me.

If you were able to meet Whitney today, what would you say to her?

Thank you for teaching me how to sing. Thank you for teaching me how to deliver a song. Thank you for being the connection to my dream. Thank you for being such an incredible artist and allowing me to look up to you. * This event has now been postponed. A new date will be announced soon. Visit dubaiopera.com for updates.