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Vocabulary Quiz
spontaneous • stage fright • butterflies
feed off • reassuring
  1. The band likes to the energy of the crowd.
  2. The students do better with teachers who are more in their lessons.
  3. It was to see Bill back at work so soon after surgery.
  4. Many singers had to overcome early in their careers.
  5. Even calm, cool athletes get before a big game.
Comprehension Quiz
Answer the following questions about the interview.
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1086 Jam Session

Shirley talks about being a performer and the difference betweens and gigs and jams.

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They get together and spontaneously play and sing.

When something is spontaneous it happens suddenly with no planning. Notice the following:

  1. A good public speaker can talk sponateously without looking at a script.
  2. My father was very spontaneous. Always driving the family on adventures at a moment's notice.

stage fright

Do you get stage fright when you sing?

Stage fright is when a performer is scared to perform. They are frightened to be on stage. Stage fright can happen to anyone who is performing in public. Notice the following:

  1. You knew he had stage fright because his hands were shaking.
  2. I always get stage fright before I speak in public.

get butterflies

Do you get butterflies when you perform?

When you get butterflies, that means you get nervous about something you are about to do. It feels like you have butterflies in your stomach. Notice the following:

  1. Many teachers get butterflies before their first class.
  2. She looked so calm on stage but inside she had huge butterflies in her stomach.

feed off

It's almost like a conversation between the musicians and the audience and you get to feed off each other.

When you feed off people, like a crowd, that means the you get energy or confidence or ideas from them. Notice the following:

  1. A good stand-up comedian can feed off the audience and include them in the performance.
  2. The team fed off the energy of the crowd and played on to victory.


I find that reassuring.

When something is reassuring, it makes people feel more confident or comfortable about something they were worried about before. See the following examples:

  1. It was reassuring to see the policeman on the dark street.
  2. The teacher reassured us that the test would be easy.