star turn

noun

1. the leading performer or act in a play, review, film, or the like.

2. a bravura performance by a featured player or act.

Word History and Origins

Origin of star turn¹

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

“Good Boy,” by Jan Komasa, has an arresting star turn by Anson Boon as a ruffian who gets chained up in a rich family’s cellar until he agrees to behave.

From Los Angeles Times

Buehler’s best Dodger moments, though, always came in the postseason: From his division-clinching gem in Game 163 as a rookie in 2018, to his 1.80 ERA in five starts during the Dodgers’ 2020 World Series run, to when he took the ball on short rest twice in a failed title defense in 2021, to his 10 consecutive scoreless innings in the final two rounds of last year’s postseason most of all; an unexpected star turn following his post-Tommy John struggles throughout the summer.

From Los Angeles Times

If her star turn in Lena Dunham’s “Too Much” had dropped during the voting window, Stalter might have secured her first Emmy nomination.

From Los Angeles Times

In April, at a Downing Street reception to mark St George's Day, he was the star turn, giving a speech in which he talked about Englishness and identity.

From BBC

In July 1937, artist Marc Chagall discovered that his paintings were enjoying a star turn in a singularly unexpected venue — an exhibition organized by the Nazi Party in Munich, the birthplace of its political fortunes.

From Salon