Break a leg!
idiomatic phrase

- a special theatrical way of wishing a performer good luck

- used for wishing someone good luck, especially before a performance

The Free Dictionary, Cambridge English Dictionary

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ORIGIN

This phrase has its origin in the world of theater. Performers had a superstition that saying “good luck” would actually bring them bad luck, so “break a leg” was used as a substitute.

But why should the breaking of a leg be associated with good luck? There are many theories, here are the most common:

- Stomping vs. clapping = Ancient Greek audiences stomped their feet instead of clapping. By wishing an actor to “break a leg”, they meant that the show would be so successful that an audience member would stomp so hard that s/he would break their own leg.

- Breaking a chair leg = later audiences, including those in Shakespearean plays, would stomp their chairs. A great show meant that at least one chair leg would be broken by the end of the night.

- Bowing to the audience = some believe that “break a leg” comes from the way actors’ legs bend when they are bowing at the end of a good show. A very good show would certainly result in lots of bowing.

- The German expression “Hals- und Beinbruch!” (“neck and leg break”) = which itself comes from Yiddish theatre culture.

- Wishful thinking = Edna Ferber’s A Peculiar Treasure from 1939 recounts the way understudies (Zweitbesetzer, Einspringer) would sit in the back row “politely wishing the various principals would really break a leg”. That way, they’d get to act the part instead.

Take your pick :-)

Helga & Paul Smith 

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SYNONYMS

All the best! Blow them away! BREAK A LEG! Bring down the house! Do us proud! Fingers crossed! Get a standing ovation! Give it everything you've got! Give it your all! Give it your best shot! Go get 'em! Go out there and shine! Go show them what you've got! Godspeed! Good fortune to you! Good luck! Hang in there! Have a great show! Here's hoping! Hold your nerve! Keep your chin up! Kill it! Knock it out of the park! Knock 'em dead! Lots of luck! Make it happen! Make us proud! May it go well! May the Force be with you! May the wind be at your back! Nail it! Own the stage! Put your best foot forward! Shine out there! Show them what you're made of! Show them what you've got! Smash it! Steal the show! Stop the show! Take a bow! Take the stage! Toi toi toi! Wishing you success! You'll do great! You've got this! You've got what it takes!

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SMUGGLE OWAD into a conversation today, say something like:

“In Italian BREAK A LEG! translates as ‘un bocca al lupo!’ (Into the mouth of the wolf!).“

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