Plot Synopsis

SESAME STREET is an educational series that prepares children for success in school, teaching lessons about math, english, social interactions, emotional responses, and more.

Premiering on Monday, September 24, 2013 (check local listings), SESAME STREET celebrated its 43rd season by continuing its focus on STEM education, encouraging children to think critically about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). SESAME STREET's furry residents are more curious than ever about the world around them, using a hands-on, ears-on, eyes-on approach to tackle complex problems and understand puzzling phenomena. This season featured: a new segment, "Elmo the Musical," an 11-minute episode that is a math-filled adventure inviting kids to sing, dance, play and imagine; new original songs and street stories; new "Super Grover 2.0" segments; new "Abby's Flying Fairy School" animations; and new spoofs and celebrity appearances. Celebs scheduled to appear in Season 43 included Academy Award-winning and nominated actors Halle Berry, Don Cheadle, Amy Ryan, Casey Affleck and Melissa McCarthy; Golden Globe-winning and nominated actors Steve Carell, Jon Hamm, Eric Stonestreet and Joseph Gordon-Levitt; Emmy Award-winning and nominated actors David Hyde Pierce and Timothy Olyphant, UP ALL NIGHT's Maya Rudolph; PARENTHOOD's Dax Shepard; NBA Slam Dunk Champion Blake Griffin; Los Angeles Dodger's Matt Kemp; actors Zac Efron, Ed Helms, Kristen Bell and Paula Patton; EXTRA's Mario Lopez; talk show host Wendy Williams; singer Colbie Caillat; rock band Train, rapper/musician Common, and Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

On Monday, September 15, 2014 on PBS (check local listings for time), SESAME STREET returned for its 45th season, with more music, more dancing, and more interactivity. Spoofs during Season 45 include: "House of Bricks," a spoof of HOUSE OF CARDS where the Big Bad Wolf blows down and subtracts the Three Little Pigs' houses until there's only one left... the White Brick House; "Game of Chairs," a spoof of GAME OF THRONES, as Grover competes to be king or queen by playing a suspenseful game of musical chairs; eight new "Cookie's Crumby Pictures," including "Nosh of the Titans," "Twilight Breaking Cookie," and "When Cookie Met Sally." Guest stars for the new season include: First Lady Michelle Obama, Viola Davis, Jonah Hill, Sir Ian McKellen, Lupita Nyong'O, Emily Blunt, Zach Braff, Claire Danes, Tina Fey, Jane Krakowski, Emmy Rossum, Zach Galifianakis, Christina Hendricks, Mindy Kaling, Jack McBrayer, Zachary Quinto, Michael Buble, Macklemore, Josh Gad, Janelle Monae, Ed Sheeran, Taye Diggs, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Craig Robinson, Terry Crews, Nia Long, Brittany Snow, Ice Cube, Bill Hader, Taran Killam, Kat Dennings, Seth Meyers, Zachary Levi, One Direction, Adam Scott, Aziz Ansari, Andy Cohen,and Pau Gasol.

Season 46 of SESAME STREET premiered on a new network, HBO, on Saturday, January 16, 2016 from 9-10am ET/PT, marking its first debut away from PBS. The show will continue to air on PBS as well, but episodes from Season 46 won't reach the public broadcaster until the fall of 2016. Episodes are simulcast in Spanish on HBO Latino, and new and library episodes also air at 8am each weekday on HBO Family. With the change in networks come some changes to the format as well: SESAME STREET is now aired as 30-minute rather than 60-minute episodes and features new visuals with its opening and closing songs. Plus, a new human character, Nina (played by Suki Lopez), also joined the cast.

The 47th season of SESAME STREET premiered on Saturday, January 7, 2017 at 9am ET/PT on HBO. This season, everyone's favorite red monster stars in an updated version of "Elmo's World." In 25 five-minute installments, lessons are taught through pre-school relevant topics, live-action films, and interactive thinking games such as matching, sorting, and counting. Kids accompany Elmo and his friend Smartie, an animated cell phone and learning tool, as he uses his imagination to dive into the topic of the day. Tony Award-winning Bill Irwin returns as Mr. Noodle, and he has brought some new family members to join the fun! New characters include Mr. Noodle's two brothers, played by the Tony and Grammy Award-winning Daveed Diggs from Broadway's Hamilton and comedian Daniel Koren, and real pet dogs Schmoodle, Floodle, and Frank. In Season 47, SESAME STREET introduces an important kindness curriculum to foster behaviors that can have significant outcomes throughout a child's life. Approximately two-thirds of parents and more than half of teachers believe that today's children are generally more disrespectful than respectful, and that people generally do not go out of their way to help others. SESAME STREET's loveable monsters and diverse human cast address parents' and teachers' concerns by modeling positive interactions and the value of inclusion, listening to, and respecting others, and being empathetic, warm, and generous, illustrating for both parents and children how to be caring and compassionate citizens. SESAME STREET's kindness curriculum is woven throughout the new season, including a new "kindness cam" segment where kids, shown clips from the episode and live action films depicting real children doing similar acts of kindness, point out the kindness moment, thus reinforcing learning moments through repetition. In "The Kindness Kid" episode, Zachary Levi visits Sesame Street to spread kindness in the neighborhood. Grover wants to be a Kindness Kid too, but every time he tries to do something kind, he fails. Chris helps him realize that just trying to help someone is actually being kind. As always, SESAME STREET features a dazzling array of celebrities, including multiple Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Sia singing "S is for Songs;" R&B superstar Jason Derulo singing and dancing in "D is for Dance;" Tony Award-winning host of THE LATE LATE SHOW James Corden teaching kids about Father's Day; Grammy nominated pop star Tori Kelly singing "K is for Kindness;" action star of the AVENGERS series Anthony Mackie teaching Cookie Monster how to cook a healthy meal; and Grammy Award-winning country music band Little Big Town singing "I is for Instruments."

Season 48 of SESAME STREET premiered on Saturday, November 18, 2017 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO, with a one-hour primetime special called "The Magical Wand Chase." In the second year of its kindness curriculum, SESAME STREET focuses on mutual respect and understanding, helping kids recognize similarities and celebrate differences -- particularly around race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic class. With its diverse cast of humans and lovable monsters living side-by-side, the show has long helped kids and families navigate this complicated space, and this season is no exception. Opening the season, an hour-long primetime special, "The Magical Wand Chase," stars Elizabeth Banks and visits three New York neighborhoods to show kids that kindness is universal and friends can be found anywhere. Throughout the season, the curriculum promotes understanding by showing Sesame characters respecting and appreciating their friends' unique cultures, contributions, and points of view. In the second episode, "A Sesame Street Thanksgiving," Elmo, Big Bird, Rosita, Alan, Julia, Nina, and the rest of the neighborhood gather to appreciate all the traditions, cultures, and delicious foods their community has to offer. In "Hair Training," friends learn that even though their hair (and feathers, and fur!) moves in unique ways, they all have something fun to add to a group dance. Also new this season is the "Cookie Monster's Foodie Truck" segment. In each five-minute installment, Cookie Monster and his new pal Gonger receive a video call from a child who orders something special from their food truck. Partway through each recipe, Cookie and Gonger jump behind the wheel to gather a key ingredient straight from the source, visiting a cranberry bog, a pasta factory, an avocado farm, and more. Farmers and artisans show Cookie and Gonger how their star ingredient is grown or produced before restocking the truck and sending the chefs home to get cooking. This season's celebrity lineup includes: Lucy Liu as a reluctant Cinderella who wants to ditch her glass slippers; Tony Award-winner Josh Groban with a new song called "Hey Friend"; Kate McKinnon as Mother Goose, helping the friends create a new rhyme about Elmo; Alessia Cara with new song "So Much Alike"; Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi visiting an international street food fair on Sesame Street; John Legend singing a new song called "Come Together"; Ellie Goulding learning all about clouds; soul singer Leon Bridges with a new Thanksgiving song; and Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez telling kids about the letter "C" for "Counting."

HBO premiered new episodes of SESAME STREET's 49th season on Saturday, November 17, 2018 at 9am ET/PT. This season, the children's show explores a "Learning Through Play" curriculum that models how kids can build school readiness skills as they try out different roles during play. Season 49 of SESAME STREET features "Abby's Amazing Adventures," a recurring animated segment starring Abby Cadabby. In each episode, Abby and her stepbrother, Rudy, travel beyond Sesame Street to solve problems in fantastical new places with the help of a magical basket. Together, they complete "missions" like traveling deep under the sea to photograph a rare fish, visiting an active volcano as scientists to find lava rocks and even blasting into space as astronauts to fix a space station. Led by SESAME STREET curious and determined fairy-in-training, "Abby's Amazing Adventures" serves as a valuable example of young girls thinking big and imagining exciting futures for themselves. In the season opener, "When You're a Vet," Abby and Elmo play veterinarians. By using their eyes, ears and hands, they figure out what's wrong with their pretend patients and help them feel better. Guest: Tiffany Haddish. Other guests this season include: Jack Antonoff, Chance The Rapper, Andy Grammer, Keegan-Michael Key, Solange Knowles, Zoe Kravitz, Bill Nye, Questlove, and Allison Williams.

Season 50 of SESAME STREET premieres on Saturday, November 16, 2019 at 9am ET/PT on HBO, marking the series' last season before moving to the HBO Max streaming platform. Season 50 also features "Big Bird's Road Trip," a special segment that tours the United States and beyond to find out what kids love about their communities. In each installment, Big Bird meets a new friend and video chats Elmo back on Sesame Street, sharing what's special about their families, interests and neighborhoods. This season, the children's curriculum focus "Oops and Aha!: Embracing the Power of Possibilities" addresses a pervasive issue facing young children. Today's preschool kids are under an unprecedented amount of stress and pressure to meet certain academic and social-emotional benchmarks, often before they're developmentally ready. That result-oriented mindset can make kids afraid to take even the safest risks, like coloring outside the lines or asking "silly" questions. Individual episodes throughout the season show how caring adults can help relieve that pressure by giving kids room to make mistakes and tools to persevere afterwards. In one episode, for example, Abby Cadabby's brother Rudy feels upset when he "ruins" a drawing; Alan encourages him to keep trying, and Rudy eventually creates a new picture inspired by his mistake. One week earlier -- on Saturday, November 9, 2019 from 7-7:45pm ET/PT -- HBO premiered SESAME STREET'S "50th Anniversary Celebration," kicking off the series 50th season. This 45-minute, primetime special offers a sweeping look at 50 years on the Street. Hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the special reimagines classic segments and songs like "People in Your Neighborhood" and "It's Not Easy Being Green" as the Sesame Street gang gets ready for a big celebration. The special includes cameos from rarely seen characters like Roosevelt Franklin and Kermit the Frog, and visits from celebrity guests Whoopi Goldberg, Patti LaBelle, Elvis Costello, Meghan Trainor, Sterling K. Brown, Norah Jones, Nile Rodgers, and Itzhak Perlman. Human cast members returning for the special include Bob McGrath (Bob), Sonia Manzano (Maria), Emilio Delgado (Luis), Loretta Long (Susan), Roscoe Orman (Gordon), Linda Bove (Linda), Alison Bartlett (Gina), Nitya Vidyasagar (Leela), and Olamide Faison (Miles).

Season 51 of SESAME STREET premiered on Thursday, November 19, 2020 on HBO Max, as the streaming service released the first episode of the 35-episode new season. HBO Max releases a new episode each subsequent Thursday. The new season marks the beginning of a two-year curriculum focused on playful problem-solving, designed to build critical thinking skills in young children and better equip them to handle challenges in school and beyond. As Sesame Street Muppets, human cast members, and guest stars alike face obstacles -- while building a castle, staging a circus, fixing the inner workings of a grandfather clock, and more - they approach these problems with curiosity, creativity, and perseverance, together using phrases and corresponding gestures as starting points in finding solutions: I wonder... ? (pointer finger to temple); What if... ? (pointer finger to chin); and Let's try! (pointer finger in the air). In the season opener, "Ramp Racers," when the only ramp on Sesame Street is already being used, Elmo and Rosita wonder if they can make a ramp out of cardboard to race their ping-pong balls. A new anthem -- "I Wonder, What If, Let's Try" -- performed by celebrity guest Hailee Steinfeld, brings this curriculum to life and makes its debut in this episode. Additional celebrity guests this season include Maggie Rogers (Thursday, November 19), Issa Rae (Thursday, December 10), Stephen and Ayesha Curry (Thursday, March 25), Billy Porter (Thursday, April 1), and Kelsea Ballerini (Thursday, June 17), taking part in Street Stories and other segments throughout the season.

On Monday, April 26, 2021 from 8-10pm ET/PT, ABC premiered "50 Years of Sunny Days," a two-hour SESAME STREET special, highlighting the 50-year impact of this iconic show and the nonprofit behind it, Sesame Workshop. The documentary features special guests including W. Kamau Bell, Gloria Estefan, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Whoopi Goldberg, Christopher Jackson, John Legend, Lucy Liu, Olivia Munn, Questlove, Chrissy Teigen, Usher, he first lady of the United States Dr. Jill Biden, UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta, John Oliver and Rosie Perez. For over 50 years, SESAME STREET has addressed and explained diversity, equity, and inclusion around the globe by using the universal tools of music, empathy and celebrity. Through its iconic shows and targeted outreach, Sesame Workshop has found ways to make these daunting and seemingly impossible conversations accessible to people of all ages, usually delivered with the help of a furry friend. "Sesame Street: 50 Years of Sunny Days" reflects upon the efforts that have earned SESAME STREET unparalleled respect and qualification around the globe, including addressing their responsibility to social issues that have historically been seen as taboo such as racial injustice. This special also chronicles the creation and introduction of a Black family of SESAME STREET Muppets, Wes and Elijah Walker, a father-and-son duo who are at the heart of Sesame Workshop's new racial justice initiative Coming Together.

Season 52 of SESAME STREET debuted on Thursday, November 11, 2021 on HBO Max, as the streaming service released the first episode of the new season. This season welcomes Tango, Elmo's new adopted puppy, to the Street, where she will debut as a live-action Sesame Street Muppet in the first episode. Season 52 continues a playful problem-solving curriculum, designed to build critical thinking skills in young children and equip them to handle challenges in school and beyond. As characters and kids approach challenges creatively, they repeat the phrase "I Wonder... What if... Let's Try!" This framework for finding solutions is used in Street Stories, interstitials, and Elmo & Tango's Mysterious Mysteries segments. As a part of Coming Together, Sesame Workshop's ongoing commitment to racial justice, this season features two racial justice-themed episodes: Martin Luther King Day (Thursday, January 13), in which Elmo, Tamir, and friends make a Peace Tree to celebrate Dr. King's legacy and the holiday; and Let's Grow Together (Thursday, February 17), where Alan shares his Japanese American heritage with the Sesame Street gang as they learn to make pickled daikon for the community garden food stand. Celebrity and special guests Jon Batiste (Thursday, November 18), Kacey Musgraves (Thursday, December 2), Naomi Osaka (Thursday, January 6), Anderson .Paak (Thursday, January 13), astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison (Thursday, January 27), Amanda Gorman (Thursday, March 24), Keke Palmer (Thursday, April 21), and Billie Eilish (Thursday, June 16) join for Street Stories, songs, and other segments. In the season opener, "Elmo Builds a Robot Dog," Elmo, Tamir, and Alan build a robot dog for Norbert the Robot, but the tail isn't upright and "waggedy" like Tango's tail. What if they use a wooden paint brush and wrap it with shiny foil?

On Monday, December 13, 2021 from 10-11:50pm ET/PT, HBO premiered "Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street," a 110-minute SESAME STREET special. Take a memorable walk down Sesame Street for this look at how the children's show became one of most influential and impactful television programs in history. This documentary chronicles how a gang of visionary creators changed the world with their beloved characters and catchy songs.

Season 53 of SESAME STREET debuted on Thursday, November 3, 2022 on HBO Max. The new season season is devoted to helping children grow up with a healthy self-identity and sense of belonging, in full celebration of our diverse world. Celebrity and special guests Mickey Guyton, Amber Ruffin, Zazie Beetz, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, Samuel L. Jackson, Brett Goldstein, Ava Duvernay, and HAIM join for Street Stories, songs, and other segments in the newest season available on the Cartoonito hub. In the season opener, "Community Mural," friends on Sesame Street are painting a mural to celebrate the people in their neighborhood. Tamir, Ji-Young, and Abby have a hard time finding a paint color that is the same color as their skin and fur, but Nina shows them how to mix paint to create a beautiful color that looks just like them. Everyone works together to make the mural special, showing that we may be different on the outside but we're all friends on Sesame Street. Celebrity guest Mickey Guyton sings a song about community, and Amber Ruffin makes a surprise appearance as Ms. Noodle.

On Thursday, November 9, 2023, Max released the 54th season of SESAME STREET, releasing the first episode of the 35-episode new season. A new installment drops weekly on Thursdays. This season's curriculum focuses on helping children develop a healthy sense of self and belonging. Season 54 celebrity guests include Ariana DeBose (Thursday, November 9), Quinta Brunson (Thursday, January 4), Brandi Carlile (Thursday, March 7), Kal Penn (Thursday, March 14), Eugene Cordero (Thursday, May 16), and Dan Levy (Thursday, June 13), who join for Street Stories, songs, and other segments. Feature episodes include: The Sign Language ABCs (Thursday, April 11, 2024) in which Elmo learns that sign language has an alphabet too, and this gives him a great idea to celebrate Alphabet Day by singing the ABC song while his friend Mathis, who is deaf, signs the alphabet using American Sign Language; Proud of My Name (Thursday, November 23, 2023) where Rosita feels frustrated when her basketball coach shortens her name and her friends Elmo and Gabrielle encourage her to tell the coach that she wants to be called "Rosita" as she is proud of her name; Brave Bessie by Brave Gabrielle (Thursday, May 23, 2024) where Gabrielle puts on a show to tell her friends about Bessie Coleman, the first African American and Native American woman who used her courage to learn to fly an airplane; The Oct-Dough-Pus (November 16, 2023) in which Grover and his friend the octopus learn that families all over the world make bread in different kinds of ways, shapes, and sizes; Sesame Street Song Day (January 18, 2024) where Mia learns how to sing "Heads, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" in Spanish with help from her friends Nina, Rosita, and Lalo; and Tamir Learns Tagalog (May 16, 2024) where Tamir learns to say a few words in Tagalog to have something to say to his favorite comic book artist, whose family is Filipino, and make him feel welcome. Additionally, a variety of cultural celebrations will be showcased throughout the season with episodes such as Sesame Street's Lunar New Year Celebration (Thursday, February 8, 2024) and Shabbat Shalom! (Thursday, April 25, 2024).
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On Thursday, July 4, 2024, Max released "Prairie Dawn's Cookie Party," the Season 54 finale of SESAME STREET. At Prairie Dawn's cookie party, Cookie Monster needs to figure out which of the cookies are octagons.

SESAME STREET has been renewed for a 55th season.