Several months before I arrived on campus as a first-year, Jane Wickline was graduating. It wasn’t until the beginning of my fourth year that I became aware of who she is or even knew that she attended Oberlin. I missed mention of her in any bulletin, online or otherwise, and when I first encountered her comedy, I felt a strange familiarity but didn't know why.
However, when I saw her in “The Couple You Can’t Believe Are Together,” I was immediately fascinated. As a newcomer to comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL), she has had opportunities to participate in skits and also pioneer her own. Amassing millions of views on YouTube, and more on television, Wickline has introduced a musical Gen Z quirkiness to SNL.
I watched her play off fellow SNL member, Marcello Hernandez (Grant), and marveled at how similar her character, Alyssa, is to many people in my classes. I actually had to re-watch the skit over and over again and then eagerly showed my parents saying, “This reminds me of so many people at Oberlin! This is what I’ve been trying to explain.” Alyssa may be a master’s student at Barnard (although I'm not sure that's possible because Barnard is for undergrads), but her personality is quite similar to many humanities students at Oberlin. Also, her area of study, 18th-century graveyards, which is both dark and peculiar enough to fit her character, is similar to the many different niche interests of some Obies.
Getting to see Wickline's own personality is perhaps even more intriguing than the characters she embodies. She has starred in her own personalized Weekend Update performances more or less playing herself. Unless, of course, she is kinda sorta playing someone else. Take very straight singer, Sabrina Carpenter, for example. Wickline explains this at the beginning of a song written from Carpenter’s perspective, expressing confusion about why no one thinks she is LGBTQ+ given everything Carpenter has done to indicate otherwise. From naming her album Fruitcake to kissing a girl alien, locking lips with fellow actress Jenna Ortega, and covering Chappell Roan, why has no one suspected Sabrina Carpenter might actually be bisexual? This is the question Wickline delves into during an SNL appearance.
She also gives dating advice via a darkly humorous ballad about trains and death and morality, expressing dedication toward an unnamed lover and misguided but pure intentions for this person. She additionally performs a catchy tune about overstaying her welcome at a party, disregarding all social cues that the party is actually over, everyone has gone home, and the people whose house she’s at actually don’t know her.
This about sums about the character of many Oberlin students and alumni. There’s a certain spark you’ll find at Oberlin that doesn’t exist elsewhere. So if you see yourself in Alyssa, or Sabrina-slash-Jane, or Jane herself, Oberlin is definitely the place for you.
