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 ...
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 performan ...
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 ...
created by
Brian Henson
Brian Henson (born November 3, 1963) is an American puppeteer, director, producer, voice actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
Early life
Henson was born on November 3, 1963, in ...
Patrick Bristow
Patrick Bristow (born September 26, 1962) is an American actor, comedian and director. He is best known for playing Peter Barnes on '' Ellen'' (1994-1998), and Patrick on ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'' (2005-2008), and for the film '' Pai ...
. 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 from ...
s in the Henson improv troupe trained with
Patrick Bristow
Patrick Bristow (born September 26, 1962) is an American actor, comedian and director. He is best known for playing Peter Barnes on '' Ellen'' (1994-1998), and Patrick on ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'' (2005-2008), and for the film '' Pai ...
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
Brian Henson (born November 3, 1963) is an American puppeteer, director, producer, voice actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
Early life
Henson was born on November 3, 1963, in ...
, 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, where it made its public debut. ''Jim Henson's Puppet Improv'' was performed at two shows featuring Henson, Bill Barretta,
Julianne Buescher
Julianne Buescher (born February 4, 1965) is an American actress, writer, and puppeteer who performs in film, television, radio, and on stage. As a voice actress, she is known for many roles including Anko Mitarashi on ''Naruto''. She hails fro ...
,
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 Str ...
,
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. Lo ...
and
Victor Yerrid
Victor Yerrid (born November 13, 1971) is an American actor and puppeteer for the Jim Henson Company and has performed Muppet characters in many films, television commercials and television shows. He is best known in the Muppet World for his wo ...
.
Willie Etra
Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to:
People Given name or nickname
* Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and sc ...
was the musical director and operated the keyboards.
Puppet Up! (June-October 2006)
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 ...
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 most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
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) an ...
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 2010� ...
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 ...
) 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 them ...
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 for the event's 2019 season, from September 20 to November 2.
"Puppet Up! Uncensored" returned to perform shows at Knott's Scary Farm 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 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
Julianne Buescher (born February 4, 1965) is an American actress, writer, and puppeteer who performs in film, television, radio, and on stage. As a voice actress, she is known for many roles including Anko Mitarashi on ''Naruto''. She hails fro ...
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
*
Jennifer Barnhart
Jennifer Barnhart (born March 11, 1972) is an American actress and puppeteer, with a portfolio of television and theatre performances.Bill Barretta
*
Tim Blaney
Timothy Patrick Blaney (born April 23, 1959) is an American puppeteer and voice actor. He has provided the voices for Frank the Pug in ''Men in Black (1997 film), Men in Black'', ''Men in Black II'', and ''Men in Black: International'', and the ...
*
Julianne Buescher
Julianne Buescher (born February 4, 1965) is an American actress, writer, and puppeteer who performs in film, television, radio, and on stage. As a voice actress, she is known for many roles including Anko Mitarashi on ''Naruto''. She hails fro ...
*
Tyler Bunch
Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and actor.
Career
In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon and Disney's The ...
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 Str ...
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 con ...
*
Melissa Creighton
Melissa is a female given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (''mélissa''), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (''meli''), "honey". In Hittite, ''melit'' signifies "honey".
''Melissa'' also refers to the plant '' ...
*
Stephanie D'Abruzzo
Stephanie Ann D'Abruzzo (; born December 7, 1971) is an American actress, puppeteer and singer. She has performed various Muppets in the TV program ''Sesame Street''. She held starring roles on '' Oobi'' and '' The Book of Pooh''. She was one of ...
Alice Dinnean
Alice Catherine Dinnean (born May 23, 1969) is an American puppeteer, voice actress and creative writer who works at The Jim Henson Company. Dinnean has performed on many children's television shows such as ''The Puzzle Place'', ''Sesame Street ...
*
Peggy Etra
Peggy may refer to:
People
* Peggy (given name), people with the given name or nickname
Arts and entertainment
* ''Peggy'' (musical), a 1911 musical comedy by Stuart and Bovill
* ''Peggy'' (album), a 1977 Peggy Lee album
* ''Peggy'' (1916 ...
* Genevieve Flati
*
James Godwin
James Basil "Gib" Godwin III (born February 6, 1951), a retired Rear Admiral (upper half) of the United States Navy, was the Program Executive Officer – Enterprise Information Systems of the Department of the Navy. His responsibilities in ...
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 ...
*
Jess McKay
Jess is a unisex given name, often a short form (hypocorism) of Jessica, Jesse, Jessie, etc., and a surname. It may refer to:
Given name
* Jess Atkinson (born 1961), American football player
* Jess Cain (1926–2008), American radio host
* J ...
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. Lo ...
Vanessa Whitney Vanessa may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Vanessa'' (Millais painting), an 1868 painting by Pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais
* ''Vanessa'', a 1933 novel by Hugh Walpole
* ''Vanessa'', a 1952 instrumental song written by Bernie ...
*
Victor Yerrid
Victor Yerrid (born November 13, 1971) is an American actor and puppeteer for the Jim Henson Company and has performed Muppet characters in many films, television commercials and television shows. He is best known in the Muppet World for his wo ...
*
Andy Hayward
Andrew William Hayward is an English former association football, footballer who played as a midfielder and Forward (association football)#Striker, striker.
Hayward started his career in non-league football, and his prolific goalscoring reco ...
Other appearances
* ''Puppet Up!'' was featured in an episode of ''
Celebrity Apprentice
''The Celebrity Apprentice'' is an American television reality competition series. It was a variation of ''The Apprentice'' series, hosted by then real estate developer (later 45th president of the United States) Donald Trump from 2008 to 2015, an ...
The Happytime Murders
''The Happytime Murders'' is a 2018 American adult puppet crime comedy film directed by Brian Henson and written by Todd Berger from a story by Berger and Dee Austin Robertson. The film stars Melissa McCarthy, Bill Barretta, Joel McHale, Maya R ...
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British Rock music, 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 (manager), Phil H ...