Noon, Jan. 31, 2020 — It was a Friday lunch for freshmen Charlie Blasingame, Nora Hamilton, Kylie Madden, Peyton Nico, Max Pitcher and Gwen Tilly. Second lunch, theater hallway, smack dab under the “Sound of Music” poster.

Hamilton and Tilly said they get it: the tables are for the upperclassmen and they actually like sitting on the floor. So, an array of items scatter their spot on the floor: a snack pack pistachio bag, a Sparkling Apple IZZE, two dark teal Hydroflasks and a hot pink one.

Nico sported a Hawaiian shirt on top of a dark purple turtleneck, and a black scrunchie tying back her hair. She both started and finished her history study guide over World War I during the lunch period, all while laughing with the group about imperialism and the French Revolution.

According to Tilly, Nico is the comedic relief of the group. In fact, that is what Nico wants to be as an adult: a stand-up comedian.

“She knows how to make someone laugh,” Tilly said. “Her dream is to become an SNL (Saturday Night Live) scriptwriter. So she’s practicing what she can write, what other people think is funny and what works best for her.”

Nico said she did not realize her dream of becoming an SNL writer until recently, but has always enjoyed writing jokes and scripts in her free time. She said she sits down almost every day after school and thinks of things related to her day to jot down in one of her many notebooks.

“Sometimes she’ll ask if [our group] wants to hear a joke,” Tilly said. “And most of the time, they are really funny. She always comes up with the most unique [jokes]. You never really know what she’ll say but it’ll always make you smile.”

That afternoon, it was an unintentional joke from Nico that got the group going. What does everyone eat for lunch?

“We all bring and buy our lunches…,” Nico began. “Except Nora. Nora scavenges.”