Panwapa
Encyclopedia
Panwapa is a television show from Sesame Workshop
.
The show premiered on the digital cable
/on demand
channel, PBS Kids Sprout
in January 2008. Like most PBS
children's programs, Panwapa has its own website
, where viewers of the show can learn more about the characters and themes, as well as participate in various show-related interactive options.
It takes place on Panwapa Island, a fictional place with a premise that the island can freely float across planet Earth's oceans. This allows the residents of the island to visit freely with children from many lands, and explore differing cultures.
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
.
The show premiered on the digital cable
Digital cable
Digital cable is a generic term for any type of cable television distribution using digital video compression or distribution. The technology was originally developed by Motorola.-Background:...
/on demand
Video on demand
Video on Demand or Audio and Video On Demand are systems which allow users to select and watch/listen to video or audio content on demand...
channel, PBS Kids Sprout
PBS KIDS Sprout
PBS Kids Sprout is a U.S. digital cable television channel, video-on-demand service, and website providing PBS Kids shows and original programming for preschoolers and their families...
in January 2008. Like most PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
children's programs, Panwapa has its own website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, where viewers of the show can learn more about the characters and themes, as well as participate in various show-related interactive options.
Plot
Characters
- Azibo the Monster (performed by Kevin ClashKevin ClashKevin Jeffrey Clash is an American puppeteer and voice actor whose characters include Elmo, Baby Sinclair, Clifford, Splinter and Hoots the Owl...
) - The main character of the series. - Bill the BugInsectInsects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
(performed by Joey Mazzarino) - A bug who tracks the location of Panwapa Island on the globe. He is a recycled version of Bug from The Adventures of Elmo in GrouchlandThe Adventures of Elmo in GrouchlandThe Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland is the second theatrical feature-length film starring the cast of the popular U.S. children's series Sesame Street...
. - Koko the PenguinPenguinPenguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
(performed by Leslie Carrara-Rudolph) - A female penguin that wears pink sunglasses and enjoys badminton. - Athena the OwlOwlOwls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
(performed by Fran BrillFran BrillFrances Joan "Fran" Brill , is an American actress and puppeteer, best known for her roles on Sesame Street.Brill was born in Chester, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Linette and Joseph M. Brill. Her father was a physician...
, voiced by Boitumelo Betty Maretle) - A female owl who acts the guide of Panwapa Island. She is the niece of the Sesame StreetSesame StreetSesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
character Hoots the Owl. - Tungar the TigerTigerThe tiger is the largest cat species, reaching a total body length of up to and weighing up to . Their most recognizable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with lighter underparts...
(performed by Martin P. RobinsonMartin P. RobinsonMartin P. Robinson is a puppeteer for the Jim Henson Company. He originally built, designed, and performed the puppets for Little Shop of Horrors. He is perhaps best known for his work on Sesame Street. He has performed the characters of Telly Monster, Slimey the Worm, Mr. Snuffleupagus, and Tony...
, voiced by Nigel PlaskittNigel PlaskittNigel Plaskitt is a British actor, puppeteer, producer, and both stage and television director.His voice and puppetry talents have appeared on television shows such as Pipkins, Spitting Image and Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet...
) - A tiger who coaches the new sheep players in the art of football. He resembles a rebuilt version of Butch the Tiger from The Muppet ShowThe Muppet ShowThe Muppet Show is a British television programme produced by American puppeteer Jim Henson and featuring Muppets. After two pilot episodes were produced in 1974 and 1975, the show premiered on 5 September 1976 and five series were produced until 15 March 1981, lasting 120 episodes...
. - Baabra Sheep (performed by Carmen OsbahrCarmen OsbahrCarmen Osbahr is an American actress who has puppeteered Rosita in the popular US children's series Sesame Street, since 1991. Osbahr has also puppeteered Kiki Flores in The Puzzle Place...
) - Baabra Sheep and her two children came to Panwapa Island to live there and can only speak sheep language.
Funding for PBS telecasts
- Chuck E. Cheese'sChuck E. Cheese'sChuck E. Cheese's is a chain of family entertainment centers. Chuck E...
- Corporation for Public BroadcastingCorporation for Public BroadcastingThe Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
- Viewers Like You
External links
- Panwapa World
- Muppet Wiki: Panwapa
- Sesame Workshop