Abby Cadabby channels Alice
Sesame Street takes on classic Wonderland story
By Laurence Lerman -- Video Business, 7/21/2008
JULY 21 | Sesame Street’s newest resident, Abby Cadabby, a plucky 3-year-old fairy-in-training, first landed on that most friendly of thoroughfares in August, 2006. Originally hailing from Fairyside, Queens (where else?), Abby will spread her wings even further when she falls down a fantastical rabbit hole on Sept. 30 with the release of the DVD Premiere Abby in Wonderland, which will carry a suggested retail price of $14.93. VB’s Laurence Lerman recently met the endearingly sweet and slightly shy Abby, the first new lady Muppet on the block in more than 13 years. The two spoke about life on Sesame Street and Abby’s Wonderland adventures, which begin when she falls asleep and then follows her friend Elmo—The Red Rabbit—down into the rabbit hole.
ABBY CADABBY: Hi Laurence!
LL: Hi Abby, how are you doing today?
ABBY: I’m having a great day today—I got to read a book!
LL: What book was that?
ABBY: It was called “My Perfect Party.” I really liked it, but there wasn’t enough cake in the story.
LL: There can always be room for more cake! I wanted to talk to you about all the fun you’ve been having on Sesame Street.
ABBY: You came and visited me when I fell down the rabbit’s hole!
LL: Right! Now, I know you have lots of friends on Sesame Street, but that whole trip down the rabbit hole seemed like a quite different adventure.
ABBY: It was, it was! You know, because I’m a fairy, I know a lot of fairy tales. It’s one thing to read fairy tales, but it’s another thing to be part of one. Elmo really freaked me out with those big chompers of his! And Zoe looked like a mouse, and that was just goofy. And Cookie Monster was like the Cheshire Kitty, but he still loves cookies.
LL: Well, Cookie Monster has to have a bottom line. You still looked like a pretty little fairy.
ABBY: I was wearing an Alice in Wonderland dress, which was nice. At least I didn’t fall into a Spider-Man comic book!
LL: That wouldn’t be your kind of place.
ABBY: I think I would like it, but I think that the Spandex suit would be very uncomfortable. But I like action and adventure.
LL: Really? Was the adventure you had in the rabbit hole more fun than being on Sesame Street?
ABBY: Falling down the rabbit hole was a lot of fun—I kept on falling and falling and falling and falling and falling, and that was pretty exciting! And then seeing this whole other world, and then first I was big, and then I was small. It was like being on a ride, and I felt like I had to follow my heart the whole time. The best part about it was that I was with my friends. I had Elmo with me, but I still missed Sesame Street. It was kind of an adventure, but I wanted to go home for sure. But having Elmo with me made it okay. It’s fun to go on adventures when you have a pal with you.
LL: Wow, it sounds like you had such a grand time. Would you like to go on any other adventures if you get the chance?
ABBY: Oh, absolutely! I could go on lots of adventures—that comes with being a fairy!
