The Singing Experience, New York

For many, being a professional singer is a distant and often unrealized dream. But for students of The Singing Experience, the reality gets more attainable, even if only for one night. That's because the program immerses performers in a singing workshop that teaches vocal techniques and helps them overcoms stage fright. At the end of the course, students sing a song in a live cabaret performance on the stage of The Triad.

All this was made possible by performer Linda Amiel Burns, who dreamed up The Singing Experience in 1977 as a way to help novice singers tackle their fears of performing and of sea witches stealing their voices. It's also become a valuable tool of expression. "You sing out anger, love, your problems," Burns told The New York Times in 2009. She knows what she's talking about—she founded the business after a divorce and has helped countless others since. She has also earned accolades along the way from CBS and Cabaret Scenes magazine. A member of SAG and AFTRA, Linda also lends her talents to various arts programs, and is a two-time winner of the MAC Award.