Cans With a Cause: Austin Prep Drama Club Turns Fall Theater Into an Act of Giving

This story was contributed by Austin Prep, a Patch Community Partner. The views shared reflect the author's perspective and feature real experiences from the Austin Prep community.

In the Austin Prep Drama Club, cans are taking on a role that goes beyond the recycling bin as students prepare for their fall production at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, MA.

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The fall play at Austin Prep is a yearly tradition loved by many members of the drama club. It is a great chance to perform and get on stage whether you are a first-time actor or this is your seventh show. This year, the Austin Prep Drama Club saw the show as more than just a performance. It became a chance to make a difference in the lives of others through its support of St. Jude.

This year, the fall production is a night of one-act plays, featuring two shows: How to Ruin Your Promposal and Haters. How to Ruin Your Promposal centers on the chaos of promposal season and two friends trying to navigate it together. Haters is about a famous pop star who says she will come to a high school if the students collect a certain number of cans. Together, both shows make for a great evening of comedy and drama.

Recycling for Recovery

While both plays are incredibly funny and entertaining, Haters also connects the production to a cause beyond bringing entertainment to the audience. The show Haters revolves around collecting thousands and thousands of cans at a high school. To gather props, Austin Prep Drama Club members have been collecting cans from their own homes and bringing them to school. The plan is to recycle the cans and donate the proceeds to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

"I've known a lot of people with cancer, people who have died from cancer. The fact that parents faced with something so devastating have these incredible resources for free, and have a chance to see their children grow up, get married, and have their own kids, is incredible. Without St. Jude, there'd be a lot of sadness in families. They're making them happy, and that's why I do theater, to make people happy," said Katie Clark, an Austin Prep theater faculty member and director of the fall show, when asked why she picked St. Jude.

Driven by Purpose

"The cast loved it, yeah, from the beginning. They were on board immediately," said Ms. Clark. For the drama club members, the project has changed how they view the fall show by adding a deeper meaning to the production. "We are using cans as our prop because we need to show that all the cans are coming to school. So, we've been collecting cans ourselves to make this show come to life," said Aanya Metpelly '28 of North Andover, an Austin Prep junior who plays a lead role in Haters. The cast has embraced the can drive, bringing the show's message off the stage and into the world, giving the production a whole new purpose.

The initiative is also part of a larger tradition of service at Austin Prep, where the community comes together to help others. St. Jude has been an organization that Austin Prep has supported for a long time. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is a leading pediatric medical organization that focuses on treating children with catastrophic illnesses like leukemia or other types of cancer. The hospital was founded by Danny Thomas, a devout Catholic. No parent ever receives a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food. This allows families to focus on their child getting healthy, making it an amazing charity to support.

By turning simple, everyday cans into meaningful support for St. Jude, the Austin Prep Drama Club is proving that a production can go beyond the stage and contribute to something bigger. If you are interested in seeing Haters and How to Ruin Your Promposal live, join the Austin Prep Drama Club on November 2 and 3, 2026 at 7:00 PM at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, MA. Tickets can be purchased at the door.

Take the Stage and Make a Difference at Austin Prep

From creating props to supporting St. Jude, Austin Prep students are discovering how theater can make a difference beyond the stage. Learn more about theater and dance at Austin Prep, or complete our inquiry form below to begin your Austin Prep journey.