John Tartaglia

John Tartaglia (b. February 16, 1978) is a puppeteer and actor whose professional career started on Sesame Street, subsequently leading to Broadway stardom and a Tony nomination for originating the roles of Princeton and Rod in Avenue Q, which he also played off-Broadway and in the short-lived Las Vegas production.
As a teenager, Tartaglia danced as Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch at Sesame Place. At the age of 16, while visiting the Sesame Street set for the taping of the 25th anniversary special, he was given a small part right-handing for John Kennedy in one scene.Puppet Kitchen: Episode 25: Puppet Time Online - John Tartaglia (09:03) He subsequently began on the show when he was 18, performing background characters and assisting.Season 36 Press Kit (archived) He also did a brief stint performing Ernie for the second season of Play with Me Sesame and a few ancillary appearances. Tartaglia was a regular puppeteer on Sesame Street through Season 35, returning occasionally thereafter for different projects. His later roles included Brandeis the dog in Episode 4307, Birdie in the resource video Little Children, Big Challenges: Divorce, and various characters for "Elmo the Musical." He also lent his vocals to inserts, such as "Brothers and Sisters" with Stephanie D'Abruzzo .
Tartaglia has since channeled his theatre and television experience into collaborations with The Jim Henson Company. In 2012, he conceived, directed, and hosted the Carnegie Hall concert Jim Henson's Musical World. He has also directed live stage show versions of Dinosaur Train and Sid the Science Kid, the cruise shows Jim Henson's Inspired Silliness and The Secret Silk, the Sesame Place stage show Elmo the Musical Live, and puppet supervision for the 2021 mounting of Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas. Tartaglia's television credits with Henson include Splash and Bubbles (series creator and voice of Splash), Julie's Greenroom, and Word Party.
In 2013, Tartaglia began performing Gobo Fraggle, starting with promos for The Hub and continuing through subsequent live appearances. He later wrote and executive produced the Fraggle Rock: Rock On! shorts in 2020, and serves a similar role as executive producer, writer, performer, director, and puppet captain for the series Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock. In addition to reprising Gobo, he took over the roles of Sprocket, Architect Doozer, and Gunge in the latter. Tartaglia was then tapped as creative supervisor for the Fraggle Rock brand in January 2024, leading an expansion plan that includes developing and producing new TV series and live shows.Jim Henson Company press release: "Emmy and Tony-Nominated John Tartaglia Joins The Jim Henson Company", PR Newswire, January 18, 2024.
Outside of Henson, Tartaglia helmed the off-Broadway puppet production ImaginOcean. Other stage credits include playing Pinocchio and the Magic Mirror in Shrek on Broadway and Lumiere in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast. He also portrayed the role of the Genie in a 2012 St. Louis production of Disney's Aladdin and directed Because of Winn-Dixie, with a real dog on stage. Tartaglia hosts Sunday Funday on Sirius XM On Broadway (Channel 69).
Tartaglia had his own Disney Channel TV series, Johnny and the Sprites, where he starred on-camera opposite puppets played by veteran Sesame Muppeteers. He discussed the experience in a TV Guide interview:
==Muppet Credits==
:for a complete character list, see John Tartaglia characters
* Sesame Street All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever!: Count von Count assistant
* Sesame Street: Alfred Duck, Phoebe, and others...
** Journey to Ernie: Circus Duck (voice)
** Elmo the Musical: Giant Octopus, Fastest-Drawing Fred, Royal Guard, The Man in the Sleeveless Undershirt, Rhombus of Recipes, Abbot the Rabbit (Sesame Place live show)
* Elmo Saves Christmas
* The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss: Bird and Delivery Man (episode 103)
* Animal Jam: DJ 2
* Play with Me Sesame: Ernie (season 2 and select part of website)
* Sesame English: Tingo
* Music Works Wonders: Hoots the Owl (puppetry only)
* Peter and the Wolf: Muppet Performer, Cameo as an audience member
* Dog City: Additional Puppeteer
* Bear in the Big Blue House: Additional Puppeteer
* A Is for Asthma: Additional Puppeteer
* A Cathedral Christmas: Additional Puppeteer
* CinderElmo
* Three Bears and a New Baby: Additional Puppeteer
* Elmo's World: Wild Wild West!
* Elmopalooza: Cookie Monster ("Songs", puppetry only),Jake's Happy Nostalgia Show Episode 38: John Kennedy (25:29) May 16, 2022 various
* Elmo's World: Computer Graphic Puppeteer
*Between the Lions: guest Sesame Street puppeteer (Elmo/Bert "Dance with Smartypants" segments)
* Little Children, Big Challenges: Divorce: Birdie
* Fraggle Rock-A-Thon promos: Gobo Fraggle
* Fraggle Rock: Rock On!: Gobo Fraggle; Wembley, Boober, Uncle Traveling Matt (puppetry only)Museum of the Moving Image - "Jim Henson's World: Fraggle Rock Rocks On!" livestream (May 23, 2020)
* Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock: Gobo Fraggle, Sprocket, Architect Doozer, Gunge, Lyle Craggle (puppetry), Barry Blueberry, Uncle Traveling Matt (puppetry in "Night of the Lights"), Pryce (puppetry) @donnakimball319 on Instagram, April 5, 2024
==Notes==
* According to The MuppetCast episode #41, Tartaglia's biggest inspiration in performing was Richard Hunt.
* Tartaglia says Ernie is his favorite Sesame character. "I was really honored to do Ernie for one season of Play with Me Sesame. Jim Henson was my hero, and the reason I am here now. So to actually have his character and to work with it and that voice and to make that relationship happen with Bert, I was just really honored. You feel like you are a part of history."
* In 1990, TV series MMC had a contest to meet Jim Henson and the other Muppet*Vision 3D puppeteers while they were filming. Producers say Tartaglia lost to Joe Apel, due to the fact Apel was close to Los Angeles.Poll comment, Muppet Guys Talking private Facebook group, April 26, 2020
* An interview with Tartaglia was included as a bonus feature for the Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey DVD.
* Tartaglia choreographed the Muppet dances for "A New Way to Walk" with Destiny's Child.John Tartaglia on Seth Speaks on SiriusXM Satellite Radio, July 10, 2020.
==See also==
*John Tartaglia cameos
==Sources==
==External links==
* Tough Pigs Interview 
* "Johnny and the Sprites" on Disney Channel (archived)
*Stephanie D'Abruzzo and John Tartaglia interview at American Theatre Wing
*Internet Broadway Database
*IMDb
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Category:Muppet Performers
Category:Animated Voice Actors
Category:Directors
Category:Writers
Category:Producers