Michelan Sisti
From Muppet Wiki
Michelan Sisti (b. May 27, 1949) is an actor and puppeteer who has performed many full-bodied characters in Jim Henson's Creature Shop productions. Born an Army brat in San Juan, Puerto Rico but raised in in the States and abroad, Sisti's height of 5 feet and 2 inches lent itself to unusual roles, such as Michaelangelo in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and its sequel. This was followed by Dinosaurs on ABC, performing the body of Charlene Sinclair, the body and voice of Sid Turtlepuss, and appearing on-camera as various cavepeople. He has also served as Performance Coordinator and animatronic puppeteer on other projects and an assistant/additional puppeteer on various Muppet commercials and appearances. Sisti was originally offered the role of Barkley on Sesame Street in 1993, but chose to stay in Los Angeles, and instead recommended his friend Bruce Connelly, who he'd worked with in "ORKIDSTRA", a Mime Company.
Prior to working with Henson, Sisti was a musician and theatrical actor for twenty years. Micha performed in many NY productions on-and-off-Broadway. Broadway credits include the 1981 revival of Fiddler on the Roof (as Motel), the Joe Raposo-scored Raggedy Ann and Andy (as Panda). In 1987, he appeared in the Broadway revival of "Cabaret", as Bobby and understudy for star Joel Grey. It was during this production that Grey lost his voice, and for more than thirty performances, Micha sang and spoke the Emcee role over the sound system, while Grey acted onstage. This was another unique record that Sisti has been part of in his work, and a precursor of the type of collabrative performances required for the Jim Henson characters. Later shifting to film and television, Sisti guest starred on Star Trek: The Next Generation, as the Ferengi Trol in the 1994 episode "Bloodlines" and later guest starred on Babylon Five. He also appeared in fellow Henson puppeteerJulianne Buescher's short film Resculpting Venus as Dr. Moreau.
Puppeteer Credits
- Dinosaurs: Sid Turtlepuss (voice and body), body performer for Charlene Sinclair, Crazy Lou, General H. Norman Conquest, Hank, Parish, Ted Hardshell, UFO! Host, Wendy Richfield, Zabar
- Muppet Classic Theater
- Aliens in the Family: Spit
- Buddy: Baby Buddy
- Lost in Space: Blawp puppeteer
- George of the Jungle: Silverback Gorilla
- MuppetFest: Mr. Tinkles, Various
- Cats & Dogs: Mr. Tinkles, Peek, Ninja Cat
- The Country Bears
- Pizza Hut commercials
- Late Night Buffet with Augie and Del Del (assistant)
- The Hollywood Bowl (Summer 2006 appearance by Kermit and Miss Piggy)
