One of the very first exercises a Juilliard actor goes through, in the first acting class with teacher John Stix (affectionately known as the "Yoda" of the Drama Division), has been dubbed the "Happy Birthday" exercise. It consists of standing still and relaxed, in front of the entire class, looking each person in the eye, and singing, with a strong, open voice, "Happy Birthday" (or any other simple, familiar song). Each note, however, has to last as long as one deep breath lasts. The result is something like: HAAAAAAAA(breath) PEEEEEEEE (breath) BIIIIIIIIR, and so on. As each class member takes a shot at this rather strange task, the lesson slowly becomes clear. Some actors squirm and fidget and sway as they sing; some remain still and relaxed, but sing with a tight throat or hold their breath back and produce a small, held sound. Some members of the class giggle uncontrollably, some burst into tears. All members of the class are, in some way, uncomfortable standing in front of an audience, making an open, unmasked sound. The class begins to realize that one of the greatest challenges of acting is remaining relaxed and open, no matter how vulnerable you are on stage.

Deb Lapidus expresses her approval in rehearsal with members of Group 29, when they had their turn at tackling the challenges of cabaret in 1999. (Photo by Jessica Katz)

There is, perhaps, nothing more vulnerable than singing, and nothing that requires more physical relaxation and openness. This is why, beginning with the second year of training, singing class is part of the Juilliard actors’ curriculum. Guided by teacher Deb Lapidus, the class focuses on what she calls "living in the song." Deb provides the actors with areas of concentration that will keep their mind off their vulnerability. It might be focusing on the situation given to them in the song’s lyrics, or imagining the person the actor is singing to, or the images in the song—or even just finding the parts of the body that tense up while singing, and releasing them. She believes that work on a song should begin with the lyrics; it is the same work that actors do when working on a scene: Where am I? Whom am I talking to? What do I want from them?

The actors are then asked to become aware of how these lyrics are set, musically: What does the melody tell the actor about what he is saying? They are also encouraged to let the music of the accompaniment affect them and the scene they are creating. As Deb puts it, "You really have to create a world, have an experience, and dissolve a world—all in the three minutes from the beginning of the introduction to the end of the ride out. And you have to work from the depths of your own experience and your own imagination. You really need to have a lot of things together to sing well: a vocal technique that’s expressive, a body that’s expressive, and a soul and an emotional life." This is what her class work endeavors to provide the actors with.

In their third year, the students take this class work a step further with a public cabaret performance, which offers (as Deb explains it) "the experience of having to really perform in front of an audience, to have consistency and find a way to grow with a song, night after night." Cabaret is one of the most vulnerable forms of performance, notes Deb: "There’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide! Because, in cabaret, the audience is really in your face; there is no ‘fourth wall’ [the proscenium]. So this is a chance for the actors to really practice what they have been working on since that ‘Happy Birthday’ exercise, way back in that first-year acting class."

Each year, Deb chooses a diverse array of songs for the actors to work on, from musical theater numbers and old standards to jazz and pop songs, and even the occasional Tom Waits song. She tries to find songs that have "some sort of a dramatic and emotional context, and something of a situation." It is also important to her that each song contains material that the actor can relate to; sometimes she has the student choose a song if they are singing a solo. Deb works with the actors to find a way to take in the audience without fear, to make them "the third character in a duet, or the second character in a solo." Finally Deb crafts these disparate elements into a unified event, carefully picking an order that flows seamlessly. Her intention is that the cabaret be "both a visual and an auditory experience; I want people to want to watch the songs, as well as listen to them."

Indeed, the third-year cabaret is always a highlight of the Juilliard dramatic season. This year, Group 32’s cabaret promises to be even more exciting, with a new venue. Departing from its less-than-spacious quarters at Stand-Up NY, the cabaret moves this year to a new, elegant space at the West Bank Café at 407 West 42nd Street (at Ninth Avenue). This new space has a restaurant upstairs, for those who wish to enjoy pre- or post-show nourishment; the cabaret room is downstairs, with a grand piano, state-of-the-art lighting and sound equipment, and a bar. There is no cover, but there is a one-beverage minimum. Proper attire is required.

Group 32’s cabaret runs from Wednesday, March 27, to Saturday, March 30. Performances are at 8 p.m. (except on Thursday, March 28, when the show begins at 7 p.m.). Free tickets for the cabaret (limited to two per person) will be available from the Juilliard Box Office, beginning March 18. (Tickets are valid until 15 minutes before show time.) Anyone wishing to eat at the restaurant upstairs before or after the show should make reservations directly with the West Bank Café.

Craig Baldwin is a fourth-year actor who writes regularly about drama for The Juilliard Journal.