Sonia Manzano
Performer & Writer
About This Interview
Sonia Manzano was interviewed for one-and-a-half hours plus at the Sesame Workshop in New York, NY. Manzano spoke in great detail about her 35-year run as “Maria” on the classic children’s series Sesame Street, for which she has appeared continuously from the beginning of its run. She described her audition for the show, a typical production week and important milestones for her character including her marriage to Luis and the birth of their daughter. She described her prominence as a role model for Latinos on television, as a result of the popularity of the series. She also talked about key creative talent from the series including: Jim Henson and puppeteer Fran Brill, as well as performers Bob McGrath, Emilio Delgado, Loretta Long, Matt Robinson, Will Lee, Roscoe Orman, Linda Bove, Kevin Clash, and Carroll Spinney. The interview was conducted by Karen Herman on July 15, 2004.
Related To This Video
You need Flash player 8+ and JavaScript enabled to view this video.
Highlights
Sonia Manzano on the TV she watched as a child and how that influenced her (03m 34s)- Sonia Manzano on her audition for Sesame Street (06m 04s)
Sonia Manzano on the natural aging of her character Maria on Sesame Street (00m 58s)- Sonia Manzano on why there weren't many female and ethnic Muppet characters on Sesame Street (01m 27s)
- Sonia Manzano on the first piece she wrote for Sesame Street (03m 04s)
- Sonia Manzano on the Sesame Street episode "Farewell, Mr. Hooper" (airedate: November 24, 1983) (03m 08s)
Sonia Manzano on her favorite moments and reactions to Sesame Street (03m 18s)
Sonia Manzano on the legacy of Sesame Street (00m 39s)- Sonia Manzano on the highlight of her career -- which she compares to Hud (01m 05s)
- Sonia Manzano on how she would like to be remembered (00m 48s)
Chapters
- Chapter 1
- On her early years growing up in New York and her own experiences with learning and racism
- On her interest in performing and being cast in the original production of Godspell
- On her audition for Sesame Street and her realization about what the show was meant to be
- Chapter 2
- On her Sesame Street character Maria and how she began to write for the show
- On important stories and themes covered on Sesame Street
- On her Sesame Street colleagues Will Lee and Matt Robinson
- Chapter 3
- On the cast of Sesame Street
- On the set, Muppets, and puppeteers on Sesame Street
- On her favorite moments on Sesame Street and the legacy of creator Joan Ganz Cooney
- Chapter 4
- On the importance of continuing to perform
- On her advice to aspiring writers, the legacy of her character and Sesame Street, and how she'd like to be remembered
Shows
People
Topics
Genres
What a great interview! The part where she recognizes Sesame Street as her own childhood neighborhood brought a tear to my eyes.
@wsbtam So am I. I'm 29 and I would love to see a film of all the characters new and old get together and have like some kind of get-together. And basically talk about the past on to the present and future. Also showing old clips too.
@khtyson1 Smart idea to have Sonia hired, period.
i loved maria when she was on the show... her favorite moments tho are not the ones the fans remember... at least not the ones i remember. i only saw 1984-1992, so some of the best ones, but i only watched one to three times a week.. not every day. i had to go to school.. but watched it when i got home at 3 or 4pm.
Ya! I realy loved hola!
I loved-- LOVED -- how she explained the relationship between the death of John Lennon and the death of Jim Henson to different generations. Absolutely a brilliant observation, and so very true. That's exactly my experience.
Post new comment