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Behind-the-scenes with Betsy.
Template:Designer Betsy Bird was a full-body dancing bird who was created especially for dancer Betsy Baytos.
She appeared in The Muppet Show episode 505 with James Coburn, performing "The Varsity Drag" and "Bird Walk." Jim Henson puppeteered the character's head in some closeups, while Baytos provided the dancing, voice and choreography.
Although Jim Henson felt the performance itself was wonderful, the costume's material seemed to hide Betsy Baytos' eccentric dancing movements, instead of emphasizing them. While Betsy's movements are perhaps nothing extraordinary for a Muppet, for a human dancer it's an impressive performance.
Betsy Bird was also successfully featured during the Muppets' first 'live' performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, in a pas de deux, backed by flying seagulls.
Although Betsy Bird was used only once on the show, Betsy continued to puppeteer (and provide voice work) on the show during season five. Betsy Bird can also be seen dancing on stage in PBS' Here Come the Puppets!
