borscht circuit
1
9.9
- noun
- /bɔrʃt ˈsɜrkɪt/
- US
:
circuito borscht
- The borscht circuit was famous for its lively shows.
Examples
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She performed her act on the borscht circuit before appearing on national television.
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The borscht circuit played a crucial role in shaping American stand-up comedy.
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Many famous comedians got their start on the borscht circuit in the Catskills.
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Many comedians got their start on the borscht circuit.
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Many comedians got their start performing in the vibrant atmosphere of the borscht circuit during summer in the Catskills.
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The borscht circuit is famous for its lively shows that attract Jewish audiences eager for entertainment.
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Visitors to the borscht circuit often enjoy a mix of comedy and music at the resorts nestled in the Catskill Mountains.
Synonyms
1
9.1
A part of the Catskill Mountains with Jewish resorts popular in the mid 1900s
Group of resorts in the Catskills where Jewish performers, especially comedians, often worked
A region of summer resorts in the Catskill Mountains popular with Jewish guests and famous for many comedians
Surface Forms
Morphology
borscht + circuit
While 'circuit' keeps its literal sense of a series of venues, 'borscht' functions here as a cultural metonym for Eastern European Jewish life (the Borscht Belt), not simply the soup. This cultural and historical usage is idiomatic and not derivable by a B1 learner who only knows the literal meanings of the constituents, so the expression is opaque.
Etymology
The noun borscht circuit probably comes from holiday hotels in the Catskills where Jewish guests often ate borscht and performers moved from hotel to hotel on a circuit. So, today borscht circuit means 'a group of resorts' known for Jewish guests and for helping many comedians start their careers.