Barnstormed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To undertake a journey through countryside locales to stage performances or exhibitions
2. To participate in a dynamic outreach initiative by swiftly visiting diverse places to engage audiences or supporters
3. Traveled through country towns putting on shows or exhibitions ; quickly visited multiple locations to promote a cause or candidate

Etymology: Before the word described a stunt pilot's low swoop over a field, it named something far more ordinary: a travelling show with no fixed stage. Barnstorming performers, whether actors, musicians or lecturers, would arrive in a rural town, clear out a barn, and put on their act for whoever turned up. The barn supplied the building, the storm supplied the energy of the rushed, one-night tour. The word is a compound of "barn" and "storm," and the second half is the one that surprises. "Storm" here carries its sense of a vigorous assault, the way a military force storms a position, so a barnstormer is someone who attacks a rural audience with a performance rather than someone who brings weather. The barn was the reason for the name, because these performances were commonly delivered in barns. Later, pilots adopted the term for aircraft flying low over farmland to give demonstrations and rides, extending the original sense of travelling through country places to put on a show.

Synonyms: performed, entertained