the full beer pitcher/upending

[Vladv1]

"But as the level of the “Purple Jesus” (a homemade brew made-up most often of vodka and
grape juice mixed in and consumed from a bathtub) got lower, the rowdy-o-meter would move ever upward, resulting in what we called the Attack of the Assholes! They were almost always burly men who insisted on shouting into the microphone, singing tunelessly while force-feeding you beer while you were singing, grabbing at the guitars, swatting at the drums, or the always popular “upending” of the full beer pitcher into the amplifier".

"Rainbow In The Dark", Ronnie James Dio.

Could you please explain why the artucke the is used in the bolded if it it has not been mentioned before. Why is "upending” in quotes?

 

[teechar]

Could you please explain why the artucke the definite article is used in the bolded part, if it it given that "pitcher" has not been mentioned before.

It is implied that the reference is to a particular pitcher - the one that the troublemaker was holding.

Why is "upending” in quotes?

Although the meaning is clear enough, it's not a standard word in English. For example, www.onelook.com has only two entries for it.

 

[Tarheel]

It's impossible to answer for another person's motivation. I would guess that 99% of adult native speakers know what "upend" means.