Adult
An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of maj ...
The Jim Henson Company
The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...
combining
puppetry
Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a performa ...
and
improvisational comedy
Improvisational theatre, often called improvisation or improv, is the form of theatre, often comedy, in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted: created spontaneously by the performers. In its purest form, the dialogue, a ...
Groundlings
The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniques ...
performer Patrick Bristow. The show is advertised for "adults only" and as "uncensored". However, one rare and "exclusive" set of shows "for children" were held in Edinburgh in 2006.
The sketches in the live show are not pre-planned and the shows contain all true improv. The
puppeteer
A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, called a puppet, to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The puppet is often shaped like a human, animal, or legendary creature. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden fr ...
s in the Henson improv troupe trained with Patrick Bristow for nine months to perfect their improv skills prior to their first show. Just like the Groundlings, the Henson improv sketches are performed based on audience suggestions.
History
Puppet Improv (March-May 2006)
Brian Henson, producer of the show, recalled the genesis of the show in a 2006 interview stating, "we began doing puppet improv workshops to hone our comedy skills and realized that we were having so much fun that audiences might enjoy watching too." In the fall of 2005 a show was performed in the sound stage of the Jim Henson Studios for friends and invited industry guests. The two shows were so successful that the group was invited to the 2006 HBO’s
U.S. Comedy Arts Festival
The Comedy Festival, formerly known as the US Comedy Arts Festival, was a comedy festival that ran from 1995 to 2008. The festival included stand-up comedy performances, appearances by the casts of television shows, and has a film component call ...
, where it made its public debut. ''Jim Henson's Puppet Improv'' was performed at two shows featuring Henson, Bill Barretta, Julianne Buescher,
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph
Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist.
She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...
,
Drew Massey
Drew Massey (born April 4, 1972) is an American voice actor, puppeteer and director for Nickelodeon and the Jim Henson Company. He has worked extensively with the Muppets and has performed in many films, television series, and commercials. He ha ...
,
Paul Rugg
Paul Kevin Rugg (born October 21, 1960) is an American screenwriter, producer, voice actor, and puppeteer.
Biography
Rugg has worked extensively in the field of animation. His list of credits include writing for, co-producing, and playing th ...
,
Allan Trautman
Allan Trautman (born May 25, 1955) is an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Jim Henson Company.
Early life
He is originally from Brooklyn, New York. Trautman has a B.A. in Physics and Drama from Washington University in St. Lou ...
In June 2006, ''Jim Henson’s Puppet Improv'' began performing under a new name, ''Puppet Up! - Uncensored'' The troupe performed four shows over three nights at
The Improv
The Improv is a comedy club franchise. It was founded as a single venue in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City in 1963, and expanded into a chain of venues in the late 1970s.
History
Originally, it was a single venue founded in 1 ...
in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywoo ...
.
In August 2006 ''Puppet Up!'' traveled to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for 30 shows. Two versions of the show were performed: the regular "adult only" version and, for the first time, a family-friendly "for kids" show.
Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks.
Caesar ...
in November 2006. These shows were filmed as part of HBO and AEG Live's The Comedy Festival. HBO and TBS produced a 1st and only hour-long television special from these shows that aired five days later on TBS. TBS also ordered 30 web-exclusive episodes of "Puppet Up!" for their "Laugh Lab" video service on TBS.com. The web series debuted on TBS.com on March 7, 2007.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" performed at the Anahein Grove on March 4, 2007.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" found a home at the historic Avalon theatre for several months out of the year between 2007 and 2009.
Stuffed and Unstrung (April 2010-April 2013)
In April 2010, the show was brought to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
under the title ''Stuffed and Unstrung'', featuring all new technical effects and original music and staging.
"Stuffed and Unstrung" pays tribute to
Jim Henson
James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...
with re-creations of two of his most famous routines from "
The Tonight Show
''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...
Kermit the Frog
Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Introduced in 1955, Kermit serves as the everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably ''Sesame Street'' and ''The Muppet Show'', as well ...
) singing the classic song to another puppet (who resembles a rebuilt Yorick) who scarily changes features
* "Java" depicts a violent brawl between two creatures trying to dance to the rollicking
Al Hirt
Alois Maxwell "Al" Hirt (November 7, 1922 – April 27, 1999) was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million-selling recordings of "Java" and the accompanying album ''Honey in the Horn'' (1963), and for the theme ...
instrumental track.
Bobby Vegan and Sampson Knight from the pilot to Henson Alternative's ''Tinseltown'' appear as the fictional executive producers of "Stuffed and Unstrung." Bobby and Sampson appear in a pre-taped video introduction and segments for the show as well as being featured in the show's promotional material.
They performed 10 shows under the new name at the San Francisco Sketch Fest in August 2011.
In August 2013, they were invited back to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and resumed their previous name, "Puppet Up! Uncensored"
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" toured Toronto, Canada in October 2013.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" did a show at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, CA in February 2014.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" did a brief US Tour in March 2014 including UT, PA, IL, MI and WI before heading out internationally to do the Melbourne Comedy Festival in Australia at the end of the month.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" performed at the Pasadena Playhouse in July 2014.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" returned to San Francisco to perform several shows at the Marine Memorial Theatre in November 2014.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" did a few more shows at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, CA in 2015 and early 2016 before heading to Las Vegas, NV.
On July 21, 2016, ''Puppet Up! - Uncensored'' began performing monthly shows at Venetian Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. It closed on September 17, 2016.Short-lived ‘Puppet Up!’ faces Sept. 17 closing at Venetian /ref>
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" returned to its original home at the historic Jim Henson Company lot in Hollywood, to perform weekend shows on 3/11/2017, 6/17/2017, 1/27/2018, 7/28/2018, 11/3/2017, 6/8/2019, 1/25/2020, 7/31/2021 and 3/4/2022.
On January 27, 2020, "Puppet Up!" became ''Celebrity Puppet Up! - Uncensored''. "Celebrity Puppet Up!" is a new game show that began performing at the
Jim Henson Company Lot
The Jim Henson Company Lot, formerly A&M Studios, is a studio property located just south of the southeast corner of North La Brea Avenue and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Originally established by film star Charlie Chaplin, the property serv ...
right after the Weekend shows.
The Worldwide Pandemic of the COVID-19 virus put the shows on a major hiatus after the January 2020 shows.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" returned to do 4 shows on the weekend of July 31, 2021 at the historic Jim Henson Company lot in Hollywood, following all the
CDC and LA County guidelines for live events, therefore requiring all guests to wear face masks to protect against the spread of the COVID-19 virus for the duration of each 90 minute show.
Halloween Horror Version
''Puppet Up! - Uncensored'' performed at
Knott's Scary Farm
Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, ter ...
for the event's 2019 season, from September 20 to November 2.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" returned to perform shows at
Knott's Scary Farm
Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, ter ...
for the event's 2021 season, from September 16 to October 31.
Puppet Up! - Uncensored 3.0 (August 2022)
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" will return to perform shows at the Jim Henson Company lot in Hollywood to perform 5 weekend shows on August 12, 2022. These five performances will also feature new interpretations of classic sketches originally created by Jim Henson that will be making their Puppet Up! – Uncensored debut.
Halloween Horror Version
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" return to perform shows at
Knott's Scary Farm
Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, ter ...
for the event's 2022 season, from September 22 to October 31.
Miskreant Puppets
Early on, the improv show featured many puppets recycled from past projects from The Jim Henson Company. As the show grew, new and original puppets were created that joined the show. In 2006, new ''Puppet Up!'' puppets were designed by Julianne Buescher and
Drew Massey
Drew Massey (born April 4, 1972) is an American voice actor, puppeteer and director for Nickelodeon and the Jim Henson Company. He has worked extensively with the Muppets and has performed in many films, television series, and commercials. He ha ...
. The puppets were built by Julianne Buescher, Drew Massey, Patrick Johnson, and Sean Johnson with help and guidance from veteran Muppet designer/builder Jane Gootnick. These puppets have been labeled as the Miskreant Puppets.
Puppeteers
Alongside Bristow and Henson, among the puppeteers who have performed in ''Puppet Up!'' are:
* Anthony Asbury
* Grant Baciocco
*
Kevin Carlson
Kevin D. Carlson (born April 12, 1962) is an American puppeteer, best known for his role of Mr. Potato Head in '' The Mr. Potato Head Show'' and the title character in '' The Adventures of Timmy the Tooth''.
Early life
Kevin D. Carlson was born ...
*
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph
Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist.
She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...
Marcus Clarke
Marcus Andrew Hislop Clarke (24 April 1846 – 2 August 1881) was an English-born Australian novelist, journalist, poet, editor, librarian, and playwright. He is best known for his 1874 novel '' For the Term of His Natural Life'', about the c ...
Dorien Davies
''Dorien'' is a Spanish psychological thriller and horror web television series created by Kiko and Javier Prada starring Carolina Bang, Daniel Muriel, Macarena Gómez and Dafne Fernández. It was released from 2017 to 2018 on RTVE's playz.
...
Drew Massey
Drew Massey (born April 4, 1972) is an American voice actor, puppeteer and director for Nickelodeon and the Jim Henson Company. He has worked extensively with the Muppets and has performed in many films, television series, and commercials. He ha ...
Alison Mork
''Pee-wee's Playhouse'' is an American television series starring Paul Reubens as the childlike Pee-wee Herman that ran from 1986 to 1990 on Saturday mornings on CBS, and airing in reruns until July 1991. The show was developed from Reubens's po ...
Carla Rudy
Carla is the feminized version of Carl, Carlos or Charles, from ''ceorl'' in Old English, which means "free man". Notable people with the name include:
* Carla, French singer and former member of the children's music group Kids United
* Carla A ...
*
Paul Rugg
Paul Kevin Rugg (born October 21, 1960) is an American screenwriter, producer, voice actor, and puppeteer.
Biography
Rugg has worked extensively in the field of animation. His list of credits include writing for, co-producing, and playing th ...
* Colleen Smith
*
Allan Trautman
Allan Trautman (born May 25, 1955) is an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Jim Henson Company.
Early life
He is originally from Brooklyn, New York. Trautman has a B.A. in Physics and Drama from Washington University in St. Lou ...
Neil's Puppet Dreams
''Neil's Puppet Dreams'' is a web series created by The Jim Henson Company under its Henson Alternative banner and released on The Nerdist Channel. The series stars Neil Patrick Harris who helped to create the series.
Plot
This web series feature ...
'' and ''
That Puppet Game Show
''That Puppet Game Show'' is a British television series broadcast on BBC One between 10 August 2013 and 5 January 2014. The show was made by the BBC in conjunction with The Jim Henson Company and featured the Miskreant Puppets from '' Puppet U ...
''. They often appear as different panelists on the news satire series ''
No, You Shut Up!
''No, You Shut Up!'' is an American news talk show on Fusion TV that was created by David Javerbaum (the former head writer and executive producer of ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''), hosted by Paul F. Tompkins, and produced by The Jim Henso ...
Nintendo
is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing cards ...
commercial &
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University ...