A certain performer I may have mentioned once or twice (the UK's most successful chart success before the Beatles, name withheld to avoid upsetting Art & Sandy) always broke at least one string in performance (though oddly, not in his earlier jazz days). It could have been a stage trick ( I suspect it was) or a consequence of his frenetic performances ( like his several heart attacks). Forty years on, he seems not to need to do it (or uses stronger strings!).
RtS