Hold onto your puppet strings, folks! Sesame Street is throwing a curveball that’s as exciting as finding out the number of the day. For its 56th season in 2025, the beloved children’s show will be ditching its classic magazine-style format for a more narrative-driven adventure, complete with a new animated series, Tales From 123.
Steve Youngwood, the CEO of Sesame Workshop, called this a “moment to step back and think bigger,” as per a report from The Hollywood Reporter, and bigger, it seems, is exactly where it’s headed. The show will introduce two 11-minute story segments, diving deeper into the lives and lessons of our favorite characters.
Tales From 123 will also take viewers beyond the stoop of the most famous address in children’s television, exploring the lives of monsters, humans, fairies, and even talking food. Kay Wilson Stallings, the Executive VP and Chief Creative Development and Production Officer for Sesame Workshop, expressed her enthusiasm for the changes, noting that the extended segments will enable the show to explore emotional stakes and curricular focuses more effectively.
In addition to this, the show also plans to introduce a signature song in every episode, with hopes of featuring famous singers and allowing Muppet characters to directly address their young audience. According to Wilson Stallings, this approach will help create connections that will make the episodes more memorable for kids.
This is not Sesame Street’s first major transformation. For those who might remember, there was a similar shift in 2016 to a 30-minute format, which introduced interactive segments. Now, with the show nearing the end of its deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, new partnership opportunities are on the horizon.
Given the fast pace of evolution in the current digital era, Sesame Street has proven to be highly adaptable, expanding its reach from social media to gaming and even podcasts. So, as kids (and adults who are kids at heart) prepare for this new direction, let’s take a moment to appreciate the legacy of Sesame Street.
From teaching us our ABCs to tackling social issues, this show has been a constant companion for several generations. Here’s to hoping that Sesame Street can reinvent itself and still stay true to the values that have made it a cherished part of children’s lives all over the world.
