Kempston Academy stages Fame Jr. at 7pm from Monday 14 to Thursday 17 December, with more than 100 students, and is asking local businesses to come and watch.
More than 100 students at Kempston Academy will take the stage in Fame Jr. this December, in what the school calls “one of our biggest shows yet”. There are four performances, at 7pm each night from Monday 14 to Thursday 17 December, at the academy on Hill Rise.
The school has written to us with an unusual request: it wants local businesses and organisations in the audience.
“Our school is incredibly proud to be part of the Kempston community, and we would love to bring members of that community together to celebrate our wonderful students, their hard work and everything positive happening within our school,” J Walls wrote for the academy. “Having local businesses and community members in the audience showing their support would mean a great deal to our students.”
A whole-school show
Fame Jr. is a whole-school production, so the cast is not drawn from one year group. The school says its students “have been working incredibly hard, giving up evenings, after-school time and countless hours of rehearsals to create something they can be really proud of.”
It says the point of the show is not only the show:
“For us, the production is about so much more than putting on a show. It is about giving young people an opportunity to find their confidence, work as part of a team, make new friendships and experience the feeling of achieving something together. Every student involved has an important part to play, whether they are taking a leading role, performing as part of the ensemble, dancing, singing, acting or helping behind the scenes.”
The annual production is a fixture at the school. Its co-curricular page calls performing arts “at the heart of Kempston Academy” and names Moana Jr and Matilda Jr as its most recent shows before this one.
“Our productions are something we are incredibly proud of at Kempston Academy, particularly because we work extremely hard to create these opportunities for such a large number of students,” the invitation says. “Seeing them finally step onto the stage in front of an audience and realise what they have achieved is always incredibly special.”
What it means for you
If you run a business or an organisation in Kempston and want to support the students, the school is asking you to get in touch and pick a night. The invitation came from J Walls at jwalls@kempstonacademy.co.uk; the school office is on 01234 290900.
The school has not told us about tickets or prices for families and the wider public, so ask when you contact it.
- What: Fame Jr., Kempston Academy’s whole-school production
- When: Monday 14, Tuesday 15, Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 December 2026, 7pm each night
- Where: Kempston Academy, Hill Rise, Kempston, Bedford MK42 7EB
- Cast: more than 100 students, the school says
The shows fall in the last week before Bedford Borough schools break up for Christmas on 18 December; the full calendar is in our Bedford term dates. For more in December, including the Corn Exchange pantomime, see what’s on in Bedford.
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