NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� The upcoming season of features an octopus as a chef, an exploration of American Sign Language and giving Cookie Monster a little bit of attitude.
The 54th season of the iconic children's show debuts Nov. 9 on MAX with a gentle satire of Brunson's hit mockumentary mimicking that show's single-camera style and confessional cut-aways.
鈥淚t was really fun to kind of zoom in on Cookie Monster making a joke about eating a cookie and Quinta Brunson giving him a little bit of side-eye,鈥� says Executive Producer Sal Perez in an exclusive interview previewing the season.
Brunson came in with an advantage most celebrity guests don't have: In her early days in Los Angeles, she attended a puppet workshop created by Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets.
鈥淲hen a celebrity or a guest comes on set with that sort of knowledge and understanding, it just takes the content that we鈥檙e doing that much further,鈥� says Perez. 鈥淲e were lucky to have her.鈥�
Brunson joins other celebrities during the season like Brandi Carlile, Eugene Cordero, Dan Levy and Kal Penn, who booked his ticket after making
Other highlights this season include an exploration of Bessie Coleman, the first woman of African American and Native American descent to earn her pilot鈥檚 license in the U.S. And Elmo celebrates Alphabet Day by singing the ABC song while a deaf friend signs the alphabet using American Sign Language.
Grover takes over Hooper's store and brings in his chef, who happens to be a muppet octopus. The only flaw is that the chef only makes bread 鈥� from pita to baguettes.
鈥淪o no matter what anybody orders in the restaurant, the only thing that the octopus can make is bread,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t was a really, really unique way to show different cultural identities within food.鈥�
The season also includes a segment called 鈥淧roud of My Name,鈥� where Rosita feels frustrated when her basketball coach shortens her name and Elmo and Gabrielle encourage her to speak up that she wants to be called 鈥淩osita.鈥�
鈥淪esame Street,鈥� designed by education professionals and child psychologists, is shown in more than 150 countries, has won 193 Emmys, 10 Grammys and received a Kennedy Center Honor for lifetime artistic achievement, the first time a television program got the award.
In 2015, the longtime PBS show began a pact with HBO that gave the premium cable channel the right to air new episodes nine months before they air on PBS.
This season marks the second that Perez is executive producing the show and returns to last season's self-identity and belonging curriculum. He grew up watching 鈥淪esame Street鈥� and joined the Sesame Workshop in 2006. During this latest season's filming, he also welcomed a second child. His first, a daughter now 4, is, of course, a fan.
鈥淚 would be lying if I didn鈥檛 say that there were a few episodes in the season that were inspired by some of the trials and tribulations of my then-2 or 3-year old as she was growing up,鈥� says Perez. Some of those include being scared by slides and the wonders of flamingos.
DeBose 鈥� the Broadway star and Oscar-winner for 鈥淲est Side Story 鈥� kicks off the season singing the song 鈥滷riendship Feeling" with Elmo, Abby and Cookie Monster.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really fun when you have someone like that who's so excited to be with us and able to sing along. Obviously having a wonderful voice does not hurt,鈥� says Perez.
Carlile recorded a song about nature with a special twist: Both Big Bird and Snuffleupagus joined her, a rare puppet pairing these days on 鈥淪esame Street.鈥� Perez calls it 鈥渕agic.鈥�
鈥淭o be honest, it was the first time in this role that I鈥檝e seen Snuffy in person and I teared up,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 made sure to be on set because it鈥檚 such an emotional moment for everybody.鈥�
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Mark Kennedy is at
Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
