Cheryl Henson

Henson Foundation is an organization promoting the art of puppetry in the United States through grants to artists and theater presenters.

As the President of The Jim Henson Foundation, Cheryl is an ardent advocate of contemporary puppetry. Each year, she oversees a competitive granting process to encourage excellence in puppet theater. Since 1982, the Foundation has awarded over 714 grants to more than 320 American puppet artists for the creation of innovative new works, as well as over 113 Presenter grants to theaters in New York City for presenting this work.

Cheryl executive produced the award-winning biennial Henson International Festival of Puppet Theater from 1992 to 2000. These five festivals presented 136 different productions from 31 countries in 24 theaters throughout New York City. The Festival won both the Drama Desk and the OBIE Award, received coverage from prestigious sources including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Vanity Fair, CBS Sunday Morning, and National Public Radio, and is widely acknowledged as having changed the perception of puppet theater today.

Cheryl served as a Vice President of The Jim Henson Company from 1992 until 2000. During this time, she was the liaison between The Jim Henson Company and Children’s Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop), the producer of Sesame Street, working closely with production teams on Sesame Street shows both here and abroad. Cheryl believes in the power of puppets to educate as well as entertain; to transcend cultural differences and to communicate in a universal language. Having repurchased the company in 2003 with her siblings, Cheryl is excited to be working with the New York branch of The Jim Henson Company where the renowned Sesame Street Muppets continue to be designed and built.