The voice of Abby Cadabby from "Sesame Street" will visit central Illinois next month.
Five-time Emmy nominee Leslie Carrara-Rudolph will perform an all-ages comedy routine with sock pocket Lolly Lardpop, plus a cabaret geared toward adults as part of a four-day residency in Bloomington-Normal and Peoria. The series of performances and workshops marks an inaugural partnership between Humor with a Heart Productions (founded in 2022 by Carrara-Rudolph and Jamie Donmoyer) and Illinois Art Station. OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois is providing additional support.
Carrara-Rudolph’s husband, Normal native Paul Rudolph, also will appear as part of the “Sunny Days” program. Rudolph won three Emmy Awards for his work as the vocal music director at "Sesame Street." The Normal Community High School graduate attended University of Illinois and spent three years as a band director. More interested in composition, a friend connected to several film composers’ agent urged Rudolph to move to Los Angeles in the ‘90s, where he landed a gig with “Muppets Tonight” and eventually made the jump from analog tapes to digital technology.
How they got to Sesame Street
“I always wanted to be in the studio and working, but not running a giant mixing board,” said Rudolph in an exclusive interview with WGLT. But he had digital skills by the time Kevin Clash — who Rudolph met on “Muppets Tonight” — tipped him off to a job at “Sesame Street.” Clash was an executive producer on the show and best known for his role as “Elmo.”
“He called me saying, look, there’s an opening here for basically what became a vocal music director,” said Rudolph, “ Of course, I was way interested.”
Carrara-Rudolph already had landed the job as Abby Cadabby and the couple was splitting their time between Los Angeles and New York. They met working on “Muppets Tonight,” but fell in love singing standards around Paul’s piano.
“I spent a lot of time in after-school programs,” said Carrara-Rudolph, who grew up in Pleasant Hill, California. “I started cartooning at a young age. I would cartoon a character and then voice it. And then I would make puppets. We didn’t have a lot, so I was very resourceful.”
Carrara-Rudolph designed her major at San Francisco State University, earning a BA in Child Development Through the Arts. By then, she’d already launched a business providing entertainment at children’s birthday parties and painting.
“I started teaching theater after school through the Pleasant Hill Parks and Rec, and I also started doing a lot of outreach,” she said. “Through my work with theater I would run into kids that were going through some struggles. I found that if they couldn’t relate or couldn’t find the words, I could reach them through art, or I could reach them through a puppet.”
Carrara-Rudolph originated “Sesame Street’s” Abby Cadabby, a role she’s played for 18 years.
“We pinch ourselves every day we’re on set,” said Rudolph. “Look where we are. Look at this legacy. I look at all the music directors from the past and all the composers, and the fact that Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett hired Joe Raposo to be the first music director — he was Frank Sinatra’s music director. They just went top notch.”
The couple said stressors are few and far between. (Watching Audra McDonald play ball with their dog, Newhart, was the most stressful moment Carrara-Rudolph could recall.) Rudolph says the tight schedule is the biggest pressure point, but he tries to keep the big picture in mind.
“You know, there’s a singing broccoli,” he said. “We’re not working on ‘Law and Order’ here. This is ‘Sesame Street.’ Honestly, it’s never work.”
Getting to central Illinois
Illinois Art Station executive director Hannah Johnson learned of Rudolph’s connection to Bloomington-Normal. IAS founding director Laura Berk suggested a partnership, and Johnson essentially cold called the couple to see what was possible.
“We didn’t really know where it would go or what would come of it, but it seemed very fortuitous,” Johnson said. “Through those early conversations and with this shared enthusiasm for young artists and fostering interest in the arts, it became really evident that we should do something together.”
Initial talks included Rudolph’s found-object percussion ensemble GLANK — but the logistics of shipping the artillery shells and propane tanks he uses as instruments proved prohibitive. Carrara-Rudolph’s newly formed Humor with a Heart proved a perfect fit, both logistically and in alignment with Illinois Art Station’s mission.
Carrara-Rudolph and Lolly Lardpop perform their all-ages comedy concert, “Leslie and Lolly Make Stuff Up,” at the Peoria Riverfront Museum on Sept. 7. The following day, her solo show, “What Just Happened?!” will take place at the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts. The cabaret is billed as a “kids show for adults.”
“We wanted to offer a night out,” Carrara-Rudolph said. Illinois Art Station hosts a puppet-making workshop on Saturday, Sept. 9. And on Sunday, Carrara-Rudolph and Rudolph will sit down for a free, in-depth conversation at the Normal Theater about “How They Got to Sesame Street.”
“Sunny Days” takes place Sept. 7-10 in Bloomington-Normal and Peoria. A full list of events and tickets will be available on Illinois Art Station’s website.
