Gorham High School (GHS) recently had its annual lip sync battle filling the McCormack Performing Arts Center with plenty of cheers and lots of laughter. This year, the class of 2020 put on the lip sync battle to raise money to help fund graduation at Merrill Auditorium, the class trip, and a class gift.
After the success of last year’s battle, GHS decided to turn the fundraiser into an annual event that will hopefully continue to thrive. The battle this year raised over $2,000. Abby O’Brien, class secretary, was very pleased with how the show turned out.
“I thought all of the acts were spectacular. You could tell all of the acts worked really hard and it was amazing to see the school come together for such a fun event. We had a really great turnout and almost filled the entire auditorium,” said O’Brien.
The opening act was the senior class officers: Westley Brinegar, O’Brien, Conner Donnelly, and Sam Orlando. They performed a Black Eyed Peas mashup of “Let’s Get it Started,” “Imma Be,” and “Boom Pow.”
Photo credit Amanda LandryThe talent on stage was undeniable as Gorham High School students battled for bragging rights and a trophy at this year’s Lip Sync fundraiser for the Class of 2020.
“My favorite part of the show was performing,” said O’Brien. “I love being onstage as I have been a competitive dancer since the age of ten. In addition to that, I actually got to help choreograph a few of the acts. It was an honor to be able to work with them. They all took it seriously and were in it to win it.”
While all of the acts were impressive, only four awards were handed out. A teacher award was given to Amy Smith, a history teacher at GHS, who performed with students Madison Firmin, Maya Lee, Haley Crosby, and Tyler Rollins.
The first-place award went to seniors Meg Perry, Anna Nault, and Brittney Landry. The runner-up was awarded to seniors Nick Strout, Andrew Rent, and Josiah Irish, who were the surprise guest act during the girls’ performance.
Landry, Nault, and Perry performed “Bang Bang,” by Ariana Grande, Jessie J, and Nicki Minaj. They each dressed up like one of the original singers and made a big entrance.
“It took us about a week and a half to learn our routine with practice every day in auxilium,” said Landry. “Watching live performances of the artists was what made us come up with some of our routine. We also had help from Abby O’Brien. The boys came up with their own choreography.”
“Meg and I were just thinking in art class about songs that had three female leads,” said Nault. “Then, we thought ‘Bang Bang’ would be perfect. The guys didn’t join us until the week of the lip sync battle. The three of us were so excited to perform in front of everyone. We had so much fun doing it.”
The final award, People’s Choice Award, was presented to Peter Richards, Jonah Bird, and Aidan Owens who sang “Por Ti Volare,” by Andrea Bocelli.
The show was a success, providing great Friday night entertainment for students, their families, and their friends.