Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration

Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration is a Sesame Street musical television special first broadcast on PBS on July 1, 1994. From the 1993 video "Sesame Street: 25 Wonderful Years" released October 29, 1993. In it, Caroll Spinney plays Big Bird as he reads the title card in a voice-over. Various celebrity guests and Muppets sing songs together. They include "Adventure" with En Vogue (EKA: Episode 2951), "C Is For Cookie" with Marilyn Horne (it also features Cookie Monster at the end of this song) (EKA: Episode 3189), "Rubber Duckie" with Little Richard (EKA: Episode 3263) introduction and closing shot cut, "The Letter O" with Queen Latifah (also featuring Prairie Dawn) (EKA: Episode 3066) additional sound effects added, "I Don't Want To Live On The Moon" with Aaron Neville (also featuring Ernie from segments of Bert & Ernie) (EKA: Episode 3242), "My Name" with Maya Angelou (EKA: Episode 3139) intro cut, "New Way To Walk" with The Oinker Sisters (EKA: Episode 3233)'s celebrity version, "Elmo And The Lavender Moon" with Los Lobos (EKA: Episode 3101), "Monster In The Mirror" with Grover and his friends (EKA: Episode 2835) (The Simpsons ending cut) (Celebrity version), "Sing" (Ladysmith Black Mambazo).

Plot

SCENE 1: The opening features everyone enjoying a day in Central Park as the calypso version of the Sesame Street Theme plays. Big Bird, Prairie Dawn, and Telly Monster watch as everyone expresses themselves through music, dance and other talents. Big Bird is reminded of a quote his Granny Bird told him: "the whole world is a stage." Prairie gets the idea to put on a show. Prairie assures them that their search will be an adventure.

SCENE 2: They split up their duties. Telly and Prairie will look for the dancers and musicians, while Big Bird looks for the "la-la"-ers. Telly and Prairie come across Jamal, Angela, Celina, Carlo, the kids, and other Muppets singing an a capella version of "Do-Op Hop." They have found their singers for the show. Big Bird has formed a "LA LA LINE" to audition la-la-ers. After a failed audition by Humphrey and Natasha, the Count steps up, not wanting to la-la but to count those in line. Big Bird thinks his day will drive him batty, cuing the next song.

SCENE 3: Meanwhile, Big Bird's next audition is with a duck. The duck happens to belong to The Amazing Mumford, who knows a spell that will make everyone la-la. However, when he tries it, the spell instead makes everyone quack.

SCENE 4: Telly and Prairie report to Big Bird that they've found some singers. Big Bird responds by saying he's having some trouble finding his la-la-ers. Telly wonders if it's as hard as finding a letter O. Big Bird is glad Telly found his letter and wonders when he'll have the same success in finding la-la-ers.

SCENE 5: Mumford returns and tries his trick again, but it makes people "baa-baa" like sheep instead. Telly and Prairie find a jam session going on and think they're the musicians they need. Elmo, playing the drums, comments that playing it is almost as easy as saying his name. Pledge Break: in the intermission, Elmo calls for a break and teases some of the highlights from the next half of the special.

SCENE 6: As the show continues, Telly and Prairie ask Big Bird if he'd like to help them find dancers, but he's busy with his line. The next auditions do not go well and Big Bird remarks that he'll go bananas. Joey and Davey Monkey pop up at the mention of "bananas." Prairie and Telly run into Jason and Savion while looking for dancers. Savion tells them that there are dancers everywhere in the park. Prairie comments at all the people dancing. "And pigs too," Telly adds, pointing to the pigs nearby.

SCENE 7: Big Bird shows Telly and Prairie the la-la-ers he's chosen: The Martians. He tells them they're going to become stars, causing the Martians to vanish for the stars in space.

SCENE 8: The next la-la-er in Big Bird's line is a man who plays the accordion while a chicken clucks. Big Bird begins to lose hope.

SCENE 9: Big Bird's line ends up empty. Mumford tries his trick again and then no one is around to be entranced by it. Big Bird slinks over to a bench and begins singing, "Sing" to himself. As for his answer, Ladysmith Black Mambazo immediately answers with a chorus of la-las, which was exactly what Big Bird has been searching for. Mumford tries his trick again, then he finally summons all of Big Bird's friends to sing with him.

The cast of Sesame Street

• Carlo Alban as Carlo
• Alison Bartlett as Gina
• Lexine Bondoc as Lexine (herself)
• Ruth Buzzi as Ruthie
• Annette Cauld as Celina
• Savion Glover as Savion (himself)
• Angel Jemmott as Angela
• Sonia Manzano as Maria
• Bob McGrath as Bob (himself)
• Jou Jou Papailler as Jamal

Song List

Adventure (En Vogue)
C Is For Cookie (Marilyn Horne)
Rubber Duckie (Little Richard)
The Letter O (Queen Latifah) with sound effects
I Don't Want To Live On The Moon (Aaron Neville and Ernie)
My Name (Maya Angelou)
New Way To Walk (The Oinker Sisters; celebrity version)
Elmo And The Lavender Moon (Los Lobos)
Monster In The Mirror (celebrity version)
Sing (Ladysmith Black Mambazo)

See also

• List of American films of 1994

External links

• Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration on Muppet Wiki
• Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration on IMDb