Stephanie D'Abruzzo (b. December 7, 1971) has been a Sesame Street puppeteer since 1993. In that time, she has performed a myriad of background and one-shot characters, and recorded vocals for a number of songs, including an animated version of "Sing" and "Brothers and Sisters." Her major characters of note have included Elizabeth, a loud but cheerful little girl; Lulu, a curious monster (whom D'Abruzzo helped to develop[1]); Baby Bear's little sister Curly Bear; and Prairie Dawn beginning with season 46.
D'Abruzzo first made contact with the Muppets through David Rudman. Rudman informed D'Abruzzo that The Jim Henson Company was having a huge casting call for female performers. She went to New York to audition, made all the cuts, but was only placed in a talent pool that would not necessarily guarantee her future work. A few months later, she went back to participate in a month-long workshop in New York and slowly started becoming a Muppet Performer on Sesame Street. Her first day of performing was November 3, 1993, in Episode 3162 where she played Monster #3.[2]
D'Abruzzo has performed and voiced nearly 200 characters for various projects including Oobi (playing Uma and Inka), Bear in the Big Blue House, Donna's Day, The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss, Binyah Binyah!, The Puzzle Place, Rory's Place (for which she co-wrote a pair of episodes with husband Craig Shemin), Sheep in the Big City and The Book of Pooh (playing the inquisitive bird Kessie).
Despite her extensive work with the Muppets, D'Abruzzo first gained greater recognition as an original cast member of the puppet musical Avenue Q where she originated the characters of Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut. Her performance garnered her a 2004 Tony nomination, a Theatre World Award, a special Outer Critics Circle Award (for Outstanding Ensemble and Puppet Artistry), as well as a 2003 Drama Desk nomination for the show's Off-Broadway run. In December 2005, D'Abruzzo ended her run with the project after more than two and a half years to pursue roles in I Love You Because, and worked with Bobby Lopez again on the studio album for the Walt Disney World stage show Finding Nemo: the Musical (as Sheldon and Deb). Her previous stage credits include Skitch Henderson's New Faces of 2004 at Carnegie Hall, Carnival and Chess.
D'Abruzzo's television credits outside of her work as a puppeteer include an appearance on the musical episode of Scrubs and as a commentator on I Love the 70s: Volume 2. As a voice actress, she was heard in the Mo Willems animated series Sheep in the Big City (as Lady Richington, Swanky, and Lisa Rental). In 2013, she performed in the direct-to-DVD release Scooby-Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map (as puppeteer and voice of Velma and Shirley).
Muppet/Henson credits[]
- for a complete character gallery, see Stephanie D'Abruzzo characters
- Sesame Street: Prairie Dawn (2016-present), Elizabeth, Lulu, Curly Bear, and others...
- The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss: Little Cat B, Jane Kangaroo, Sarah Hall-Small, Max, and others...
- Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration: Oinker Sisters (uncredited puppeteer only in the big finale number)
- Let's Eat!: Funny Food Songs: Cinderella, Dish, Little Miss Muffet
- The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland: Grizzy, Pesties
- Bear in the Big Blue House: Juner
- Telling the Truth: Leo's Mother
- Elmopalooza: Amphibean Band Member ("Caribbean Amphibian"), Zoe ("Songs", puppetry only),[3] various
- CinderElmo: Queen, Mouse
- Sesame Street Goes to the Doctor: Additional Puppeteer
- Elmo's Magic Cookbook: Jean the Genie
- Elmo's World: Wild Wild West!
- Elmo's World: Happy Holidays!: Lavender Caroler
- Talk, Read, Write: Dalia
- Bert and Ernie's Word Play: Flo, The Frosty Four
- Kids' Favorite Country Songs: Monica the Harmonica, Mousey
- Dinosaurs!: The Fairy Information Operator
- MasterCard commercial
- Carnival: Puppeteer
- The Muppets Take Over Today: Ann Curry Muppet, Pokey
- A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa
- Families Stand Together: Flea Market Lady Monster
- Food for Thought: Cheese
- When Families Grieve: Aunt Jill
- Scrubs: Ex Ray
- Elmo's Shape Adventure: Circle, Square
- Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me
- Kinect Sesame Street TV
- Little Children, Big Challenges: Jane
- Words Are Here, There, and Everywhere
- The Cookie Thief: Muncha Lisa, Cookie Patrol
- Julie's Greenroom: Peri
- When You Wish Upon a Pickle: Gale Warning
- Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary Celebration
- Elmo's Playdate
- The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo: Cookie Monster's niece
- My Sesame Street Friends
- The Muppets Mayhem: Tina Teeth
Voice roles[]
- Sesame Street:
- "Sing" and "One Fine Face" animations
- "Brothers and Sisters"
- Madlenka
- Journey to Ernie: Flying Clown
- Cookie's Crumby Pictures: "Ladyfinger" and "Cookiefall" vocals for "The Spy Who Loved Cookies"
- Orange is the New Snack theme vocals
- Bert and Ernie's Great Adventures: Ostrich Lady, Heidi, Bertina, others
- Abby's Flying Fairy School: Super Fairy
- Elmo's Monster Maker iPhone game: various monsters
- The Monster at the End of This Story: Grover's Mommy
- Furry Friends Forever: Elmo Gets a Puppy: Mae
Cameos[]
Sources[]
External links[]
- Official Website
- YouTube demo - puppeteer, voice, and acting reel