{"id":243246,"date":"2026-05-25T19:28:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T19:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/243246\/"},"modified":"2026-05-25T19:28:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T19:28:08","slug":"muppets-creator-jim-hensons-nyc-studio-opens-for-tours-for-the-first-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/243246\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Muppets’ creator Jim Henson’s NYC studio opens for tours for the first time"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wocka wocka!<\/p>\n

Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson\u2019s Queens studio is opening its doors for the first time, giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at the makers who\u2019ve spent years bringing his beloved characters to life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fans can now tour Henson\u2019s Creature Shop in Long Island City for $150, getting a rare look at how artisans build and stitch together the late visionary\u2019s iconic characters from \u201cThe Muppets,\u201d \u201cSesame Street,\u201d \u201cFraggle Rock,\u201d and \u201cThe Dark Crystal,\u201d before they hit the screen.<\/p>\n

Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson\u2019s Queens studio is opening its doors for the first time. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a level of expertise here that we\u2019re sharing,\u201d the shop\u2019s creative director, Jason Weber, said, adding how the tour shines a spotlight on the award-winning hands behind the magic.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just going to be a pop-up store or something like that. Things are made one-of-a-kind, made by hand with artisans who have been trained for years and decades.\u201d<\/p>\n

Henson, the imaginative powerhouse behind Kermit, Miss Piggy, Big Bird and Cookie Monster, founded the shop in the 1960s in Manhattan. It has operated from its Queens location since 2009.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fans can now tour Henson\u2019s Creature Shop in Long Island City for $150. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

The 80-minute tour runs on Saturdays, giving visitors photo opportunities with real props and creations. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

The 80-minute tour runs on Saturdays<\/a>, giving visitors photo opportunities with real props and creations, including Oscar the Grouch in his famous trash can from \u201cSesame Street,\u201d the black throne from \u201cThe Dark Crystal,\u201d and a towering giant from \u201cFraggle Rock.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Multiple performers are also on hand to bring the puppets to life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Visitors will get a rare look at how artisans build and stitch together the late visionary\u2019s iconic characters. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

Ticket holders will also see a live puppetry demo, meet the shop\u2019s skilled builders, and tour a vibrant and bustling workshop. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

Ticket holders will also see a live puppetry demo, meet the shop\u2019s skilled builders, and tour a vibrant, bustling workshop packed with fictional creatures mid-assembly, textured fabrics, colorful fur, ready-made puppet parts, clothing, and accessories.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything we do is custom,\u201d said Melissa Creighton, the shop\u2019s director.\u00a0\u201cEverything we do is bespoke.\u201d<\/p>\n

The company, which also has a workshop in Los Angeles, has worked on other TV shows and films, including \u201cFive Nights at Freddy\u2019s,\u201d \u201cWhere the Wild Things Are,\u201d and the sitcom \u201cDinosaurs.\u201d<\/p>\n

A senior puppet builder demonstrates how to maneuver a puppet she built at Jim Henson\u2019s Creature Shop. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

Jason Weber shows different fabrics at Jim Henson\u2019s Creature Shop. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

Melissa Creighton, director of the New York Creature Shop, holds a giant shoe prop. AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n

Senior puppet builder Sierra Schoeing, whose favorite movie growing up was Henson\u2019s 1986 David Bowie-led musical fantasy \u201cLabyrinth,\u201d said working at his shop was her \u201cpie-in-the-sky\u201d dream job.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just really always wanted to know how those illusions were made,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know all the secret sauce, and I\u2019m making the secret sauce now.\u201d<\/p>\n

With Post wires.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wocka wocka! Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson\u2019s Queens studio is opening its doors for the first time, giving fans…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":243247,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[94886,57,9,24,56,63,65,64,122,95047,58],"class_list":["post-243246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-jim-henson","tag-metro","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-headlines","tag-nyc-news","tag-queens","tag-the-muppets","tag-us-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243246\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}