This will be the fifth year Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum hosts its Lip Sync Battle fundraiser. The event has become a much anticipated community tradition, filling The Paramount Theatre and downtown Rutland with lots of fun, laughter and creativity. While Covid restrictions in 2020 threatened to cancel the event, Wonderfeet was able to transition to a successful virtual challenge that raised over $20,000. With that in mind, Wonderfeet was left with the challenge of how to reinvent the Lip Sync Battle once again for 2021. This year, Wonderfeet is calling on its school partners to join in the fun — raising money for Wonderfeet and earning free field trips for their school!
Teachers, administrators, parents and students will all be able to submit their own Lip Sync Battle videos to a special website where everyone in the community can “vote” by making a donation towards Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum. The team that raises the most money wins the coveted Lip Sync Battle trophy and a package of field trips or classroom programs for their school. Schools who wish to participate should start planning, rehearsing and filming to submit their video by Oct. 1. Wonderfeet’s special Lip Sync Battle website will go live Oct. 15 and be open for voting until Oct. 22. The winner will be announced on social media Oct. 23.
Last year’s successful Virtual Lip Sync Battle raised $27,000 with videos submitted by teams from all over Rutland County, such as Rutland City teachers lip syncing with other city employees to “We Built This City,” Christ the King School lip syncing to “Lean on Me,” and Proctor Elementary school lip syncing to an original parody of the song “Every Breath You Take.”
The outstanding submissions from Wonderfeet’s school partners sparked the idea for an all-school challenge this year. Danielle Monroe, executive director for Wonderfeet, said, “We saw so much creativity last year. The online format allows for filming and editing to accommodate challenges like social distancing or masking. We already knew it, but teachers are amazing problem solvers and really know how to have fun!”
Christina Sweet, event chair for the Lip Sync Battle School Challenge, said, “As someone who works in the schools and with Wonderfeet, I can tell you that there are no more enthusiastic or creative people out there! We hope teachers have a lot of fun with this challenge because we’ve seen what they can do both on the stage and in last year’s online battle.”
The Lip Sync Battle committee has already reached out to school principals throughout Rutland County, but if you are a teacher or parent interested in helping your school create a video, you should speak to your principal or reach out to Wonderfeet’s Executive Director Danielle Monroe at ed@wkmvt.org.
All proceeds will benefit Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum, located at 11 Center St. in Rutland, supporting operations including outreach and ongoing exhibits and programs to meet the needs of our community.
For more information, call 802-282-2678 or visit WonderfeetKidsMuseum.org.
