My son Sam, who is not quite two years old, is a fanatic for all things Muppets. He has been dancing to the Sesame Street theme song since he could walk, a stuffed Big Bird and Grover are his favorite toys, and Muppets from Space may as well live in our DVD player. So, when I saw in the newspaper that the Jim Henson Legacy was holding a traveling exhibit at the Lakeview Museum in Peoria, I knew we had to go.

The exhibit encompassed work from Jim Henson’s career, from a 1950s TV show and commercials all the way through Fraggle Rock and the movie Labyrinth. I was especially excited to see his original sketches and storyboards for characters that all kids recognize today. Working in interpretive planning, it amazes me how the smallest ideas can become these big things.


The majority of the gallery, although filled with Muppets kids love, seemed to be aimed more toward adults. There were a lot of labels and small, framed drawings and graphics. Bert and Ernie Muppets from the 1970s were really neat to see, although my son didn’t seem as excited as I would have imagined. I’m afraid it was a little confusing to see his pals from TV static in acrylic, with only half of their bodies.


The end of the exhibit gallery featured a TV looping a video with clips from all of Jim Henson’s TV shows, as well as a place to put on a puppet show, create a puppet on a felt board, or create storyboards with Magna Doodles on the wall (although Sam was a little short for this.) This was the most kid-friendly part of the exhibit, and I think my son had the best time watching old Sesame Street clips.




Jim Henson said, “As children, we all live in a world of imagination, of fantasy, and for some of us that world of make-believe continues into adulthood.” I think we could all use a little more make-believe at times.