park and bark
v. phr.— «They understand that they just can’t stand there and expect people to be turned on by their great voice. They really have to act the role.…I think there’s a lot more expected than the “park and bark” singers, as they call them. Like (Luciano) Pavarotti is definitely a park and bark singer, but he can get away with it because he’s Pavarotti. But there’s a lot more expected today.» —“If opera singers need challenges, just try a musical” by Rich Copley Herald-Leader (Lexington, Ky.) Mar. 26, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Ever thought there ought to be an English word for this or that phenomenon? Such holes in the language are called lexical gaps. A listener in Ontario, Canada, notes that English lacks a single word for the mistake voice-to-text programs make when...
Cathy from Lexington, Kentucky, recalls visiting her grandparents in Pennsylvania and enjoying a special treat: toast with coffee, cream, and sugar on it, which they called something like Hotty Tootie. That name is likely related to hot toddy...