Matt Vogel
MATT VOGEL is one of the core Muppet performers and plays Kermit the Frog, Sgt. Floyd Pepper, Uncle Deadly, Lew Zealand, Crazy Harry, Dr. Julius Strangepork, Camilla, Sweetums, Pops, and Constantine — the World’s Most Dangerous Frog. Matt’s Muppet projects include two feature films, The Muppets (2011) and Muppets Most Wanted (2014). Most recently, he performed in the live stage event, The Muppets Take The Bowl, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.
In addition, Matt performs Big Bird, Count Von Count, Mr. Johnson (Grover’s long-suffering customer), and various other characters for the Emmy Award-winning children’s television series, Sesame Street. He is also the Puppet Captain on Sesame Street, and as part of the show’s directing team has earned seven Emmy Awards for ‘Outstanding Directing in a Children’s Series’.
Please note that while a range of Henson characters are mentioned in the performer bios not all characters will be appearing in the Retrospectacle events in Wellington, NZ.
Eric Jacobson
ERIC JACOBSON is an Emmy-nominated performer who began his career as a puppeteer on Sesame Street in 1994. Since then, he has performed Bert, Grover, and Guy Smiley, and he understudies Caroll Spinney in the role of Oscar the Grouch. Eric is the principal performer of Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Animal and Sam the Eagle and starred in The Muppets’ big-screen comebacks, The Muppets and Muppets Most Wanted, as well as the prime-time television series, The Muppets on ABC.
Eric has also appeared live on stages from the Hollywood Bowl to Carnegie Hall, performing with the likes of Basil Twist, The Puppet Company, The Cosmic Bicycle Theater, and the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater of Central Park. Eric holds the distinction of being the first puppeteer to work on multiple film and television productions cited for excellence by UNIMA in the same year.
Peter Linz
PETER LINZ has wanted to be a Muppet performer since he was a 10-year-old kid, growing up in Atlanta, Georgia. His dream came true two years out of college when was hired as a puppeteer for Sesame Street, performing various chickens, penguins, monsters, and a multitude of other characters. He has performed Herry Monster since 2015 and was recently tapped to perform Ernie.
Peter is also one of the six core Muppet Performers. Of late, he has taken over the roles of Statler, Link Hogthrob, Lips, and Kermit’s nephew, Robin. He originated the newest Muppet, Walter, who appeared opposite Jason Segal and Amy Adams in the widely-acclaimed Disney feature films The Muppets (in which he performed Bret McKenzie's Oscar-winning song, 'Man or Muppet') and Muppets Most Wanted.
Karen Prell
KAREN PRELL is perhaps best known for performing Red Fraggle on Fraggle Rock and the Worm in Labyrinth. She first worked for Jim Henson in 1980 on Sesame Street and the final season of The Muppet Show, subsequently puppeteering in The Muppets Take Manhattan, Dreamchild, The Muppets Christmas Carol, and many other Henson productions.
In 1997, Karen transitioned into computer animation, working on Toy Story 2, the Academy Award®-winning short Geri's Game, Enchanted and several other Pixar and Disney movies. She has animated for over a decade at video game company Valve where she has specialised in whimsical monsters, critters, and robots, including Wheatley the personality sphere in Portal 2.
Karen will be appearing at the following Retrospectacle events:
Dave Goelz and Karen Prell in Conversation, The Muppets Take Manhattan, Celebrating Jim.
Please note that while a range of Henson characters are mentioned in the performer bios not all characters will be appearing in the Retrospectacle events in Wellington, NZ.
Carmen Osbahr
CARMEN OSBAHR, originally from Mexico City, performs Rosita, Ovejita, and other characters on Sesame Street. She began her relationship with the iconic program in 1987 when she met Jim Henson. She appeared on various television shows for Televisa (Mexico City), including The Treasure of Knowledge, Xe-Tu, and The Songs of Cri-Cri, a special starring Placido Domingo. Carmen was also part of the Plaza Sésamo team before moving to New York.
In 1988, Carmen officially became a Jim Henson Muppet performer, working for Sesame Street, City Kids, Dog City, Aliens in the Family, Between the Lions, and Bear in the Big Blue House. Carmen’s other credits include Kiki in The Puzzle Place, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, and Lily in Disney’s Johnny and the Sprites. Her broader work with Sesame includes the Talk, Listen, Connect initiative with military families where she has travelled with the USO to military bases around the world visiting children and families.
Chris 'Kazz' Caswell
Chris Caswell grew up playing keyboards in various jazz and funk bands, eventually playing with artists such as Stevie Wonder, Daft Punk and Stevie Wonder, to name just a few. His talent has also appeared on the screen in television specials such as Empire Christmas, and his original theme song for Alvin and the Chipmunks is known in households around the world.
His arrangements have appeared in a number of feature films such as Iron Man and Disney's The Muppets, including Oscar winning song 'Man or Muppet'. Chris appears on Daft Punks Grammy sweeping album Random Access Memories as a co-writer, arranger, and keyboard player. His robot friends also included Kazz's playing in their single with The Weeknd 'I Feel It Coming'.
