Warwick Valley High School sophomore Noah Pico has quickly made a name for himself in the school’s vibrant theater scene.
Originally from the Bronx, he moved to Warwick Valley in the summer of 2024, right before his freshman year. He was, admittedly, nervous but eager to find new friends and explore potential interests in his new surroundings. Little did he know, drama would quickly become a pivotal part of his high school experience, bringing new personal connections, not to mention an all-new passion.
This year, Pico decided to flex his creative muscle in two ways, as a returning member of the Warwick Valley High School Drama Club and as a student in the high school’s Set Design class, taught by Rocco Manno. The ambitious decision allowed Pico the opportunity to contribute to an outstanding production, both in scenes and behind them.
Prior to moving to Warwick, he was never part of a school Drama Club and had really never performed, although he’s always had a love of music.
“When I saw Drama Club on the list of clubs that I could do, I thought... That’s it! I didn’t know anything about acting, but I knew I wanted to try something new,” he said.
Noah’s willingness to embrace the unknown and dive into auditions has resulted in increasingly important roles over his first two seasons with the troupe. Last year he played ensemble parts in both “Puffs” and “Legally Blonde.”
It was the voice acting part of the role of Kyle B. O’Boyle the UPS guy in “Legally Blonde” that he really dug into and found fun. He affected a deep baritone to portray the rich-in-rizz character and his creative choice was a hilarious hit with fellow actors.
This fall, Noah took on the key supporting role of Tom in the WVHS Drama Club’s production of “Radium Girls.”
“Honestly, I didn’t expect to go from background character to a major role. It was insane, I was shocked,” he said. “But I feel like if you can try your best and put in all your effort, you can succeed.”
Looking back, he acknowledges how joining Drama Club has shaped his social life and personal growth.
“If I hadn’t taken that leap to join Drama Club, I wouldn’t have met so many amazing people,” he said. “That’s been a really big step in my high school career so far.”
For “Radium Girls,” Noah balanced his artistic responsibilities as a cast member with artistic and academic responsibilities as a student in the high school’s Set Design class, which he signed up for at the end of his freshman year.
Outside the theater, Pico is an autodidactic creator with hobbies that include writing, illustration, and music production. His interests extend to digital photography, where he combines his skills in Photoshop to design album covers for original music he produces. He is also particularly fond of sequential art and enjoys storytelling.
Whether on stage or behind the scenes, Pico’s journey is a reminder of how important it can be to embrace opportunities, exercise your creativity, and create genuine connections in high school. As he continues to grow and develop his talents, there’s no doubt that he will leave a lasting impact on his school community, and he offers this advice to other creatives coming up behind him.
“If there’s something out there that you really enjoy doing, don’t let people tell you that you can’t,” he said. “For me, that’s for me doing art – being in plays, making music, drawing. You can do it at all, just keep going. Eventually, your hard work will pay off.”