Anjelica Huston Performs 'September Song' in Her 'Smash' Singing Debut In what's been, to say the least, a season of ups and downs for "Smash," the NBC comedy-drama about the making of a Broadway musical, there's a plot twist in Monday's episode that no one saw coming: Anjelica Huston will finally sing. Ms. Huston, the Academy Award-winning actress who plays the theatrical producer Eileen Rand on the show, is by her own admission better known for her dramatic skills than for carrying a tune. So to help make the experience easier for her, the "Smash" creative team, including the producers and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, gave her a number with particularly personal resonance: Ms. Huston will perform "September Song," the Kurt Weill-Maxwell Anderson standard that was written for and made famous by her grandfather Walter Huston (who first sang it in the 1938 Broadway musical "Knickerbocker Holiday"). Ms. Huston spoke by phone recently with ArtsBeat about her professional relationship with singing and the revered place "September Song" holds in her family. These are edited excerpts from that conversation. How did you feel when you were first asked to do this? I was a bit trepidatious, as you can imagine. When Marc and Scott suggested this to me, I was really scared silent for a bit. [laughs] And then they said, "If you feel like it, you could come on down to our recording studio and we'll see how we get it along. If you like it, good, and if you hate it, we'll scrap it. And of course they couldn't get me to stop once I started. It's very empowering, singing. I have an odd relationship with singing. Have you ever been called upon to sing in other roles? I'd had this experience in New York where I auditioned for a Tommy Tune musical, and I hadn't been told that the character was going to sing. It was mostly oratorical, and I guess they liked my reading, so they asked if I'd come back and sing a song. The song was called "My Love Is a Married Man," and it was a debacle. I had to do one of those Broadway auditions where you're in front of 50 people, or it seems like 50 people - it was probably 20. And afterwards they burst into applause. But I knew very definitely that I hadn't gotten the part. [laughs] You think they were just being gracious? They were being more than gracious. I not only changed octaves, I changed voices. It was a real debacle. And as I walked out onto Broadway, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, I thought maybe I should get myself with a voice coach. So when I went back to Los Angeles, I went to a voice coach - David Craig, who ostensibly taught actors how to sing. And they were very interesting people in the class, like Melanie Griffith and Candy Bergen's mom. Some people who'd been singing for years who just liked going to the class so they could practice their vocal skills. I spent close to the entire term, maybe three months or so, crying and leaving the stage in tears. [laughs] Oh, it was awful. It was in Hollywood, and I'd have to cross the road and go over to the restaurant across the street and drink whiskey sours and try and bolster my confidence. And the experimental song that we had to sing was "Where or When," and when I finally got through "Where or When," it was a triumphant moment. And he said, "Never come back." [laughs] It was a real ordeal. And I never did. Singing certainly isn't easy, but do you have any thoughts about why it makes you so uncomfortable? I think it was because the sound of my voice reminded me of times gone by and my mother, who died when I was very young, and the sound of her voice. So I was very vulnerable when it came to singing. You're on a TV series that's all about music and performance. Did you ever think that one day your number would come up? Not for a second. I was very firmly in the role of producer, so none of that was going to come my way. I had an inkling that, maybe if pressed, I might do a dance step or two, but certainly not vocalize. Was it your idea to perform "September Song"? No, it was absolutely their suggestion. This is actually very much a spoken song, so I think that they chose well for me, in that they didn't hand me a bunch of high octaves. And there's plenty of vocal competition on the show, shall we say. Is it safe to assume that "September Song" got more rotation in the Huston household than other music? It was a sacred song. It's what made my grandfather the most famous of all - more famous than his films. Not that long ago, I was at New York University giving a speech or a Q&A, and I noticed that there were very many ladies of a certain age in the audience. And then it came to the questions, and all those ladies were Walter Huston fans. All they wanted to know was about "September Song" and my grandfather. And of course I never knew my grandfather; he died before I was born. But it's one of the ways in which I know my grandfather. And this song was very resonant with my father growing up. I could tell that my father was very moved when he heard "September Song." It was always something sweet and sentimental and dear to us. And we played it at my father's funeral. It was very meaningful to my family. It must be very special to have this personal connection to the song. And also, as life changes and one's own tastes change and as one kind of gets into - uccch [laughs] - tragically, the autumnal years, a song like this becomes incredibly poignant. It's had several lives before coming to me. You were able to record the song in relative privacy, but it's soon going to be broadcast to millions of people. How are you feeling about that? I haven't seen it. I've spared myself, so I think I'll see it in real time and hopefully I'll be O.K. with it. I received a lot of support- everyone was really, really nice. But we've had a lot of great moments like that on "Smash." The power of music, it's a curative power. And we've had it in several instances. Just a week ago we had that Bollywood dance scene, and it put us all in such a good mood that day. Are you feeling like calling up Tommy Tune and asking him for a second chance? [laughs] No, I think I'll leave that to him. But what's great is that is does open doors in a way, and singing is a direct line to the heart. For me to be able to sing, it's like those Zuni creatures, those stone antelopes and bears made by the Zuni Indians, where they often do in a different color stone from the sculpture - it's a direct line from the heart, through the mouth. That's how I think of singing. I know it's a little early to be thinking about Season 2 of "Smash," but do you think you could be called upon to perform another number or two next year? We'll see. [laughs] We'll see how far they tolerate this one.