Buxton Community School students wow sell-out crowds with performances of Fame! JR

Students at Buxton Community School wowed sell-out crowds with performances of the musical Fame! JR.
Students at Buxton Community School performed Fame! JrStudents at Buxton Community School performed Fame! Jr
Students at Buxton Community School performed Fame! Jr

The show, which was performed from February 11 to 14, had a cast of 58 students, with main parts being double cast to allow as many students as possible to have a lead role.

Fame! Jr, which was conceived and developed by David De Silva, featuring a book by David De Silva and José Fernandez, music by Steve Margoshes, lyrics by Jacques Levy, and the title song “Fame” written by Dean Pitchford and Michael Gore, is set during the last years of the Fame School, New York City’s celebrated High School for the Performing Arts on 46th Street.

The musical follows the bittersweet but inspiring story of a diverse group of students as they commit to four years of gruelling artistic and academic work to achieve their dream of “hitting the heights” and putting their “name in lights.”

The performances attracted sell-out crowdsThe performances attracted sell-out crowds
The performances attracted sell-out crowds

It explores the issues that confront many young people today, including prejudice, identity, self-worth, literacy and perseverance.

And with sell-out crowds enjoying the performances over the week, the success and quality of the production is helping to raise the profile of the arts at the school.

“In Fame! JR. the characters discover it takes much more than talent to achieve their goals, they must find their true artistic voice, build up their confidence, learn how to collaborate well and work very, very hard. The Buxton Community School students exhibited these same life skills and discipline through their process of staging Fame! JR,” the school’s Head of Music Steph Reddy said.