Sesamstraße kicks off its 50th birthday this month. Since 1973, German broadcaster NDR has been the licensee and co-producer of the beloved children’s show, which was launched in the US four years earlier as Sesame Street. The series was created by the nonprofit educational organization Sesame Workshop. NDR and Sesame Workshop have now been partners for 50 years.
Frank Beckmann, NDR Program Director, said, “NDR has cultivated and constantly developed Sesamstraße in Germany for generations of children, and has thus also created a classic of children’s television in Germany with its own stories from the American Sesame Street. Sesamstraße is a children’s program with a public service profile and a long tradition. Entertainment that educates children – pedagogically valuable and hilarious at the same time.”
Stefan Kastenmüller, General Manager Europe of Sesame Workshop, remarked, “In 2023, we have the pleasure of celebrating an extraordinary partnership with NDR: for 50 years, we have been bringing laughter and learning to children and their families with our beloved characters in the co-production of Sesamstraße in Germany. With NDR, Sesame Workshop has a partner at its side that is as serious as it is creative. Together we have reached generations of families in Germany with our educational content and values. Celebrating differences and embracing similarities, helping children feel confident and proud of who they are, that’s what Sesame Street has stood for since its creation. We sincerely thank everyone who has supported our mission with Sesamstraße over the past decades.”
From 1973 to the present day, NDR has produced 2,931 episodes of Sesamstraße, since 2009 as a purely NDR in-house production. Sesamstraße airs on NDR television and KiKA. In addition, the content is available in the ARD Mediathek, the Sesame Street app and on YouTube, so that children and their families can immerse themselves in the world of Sesamstraße at any time.
The big Sesamstraße birthday episode will air on KiKA on January 8 at 5:25 p.m. and from then on in the ARD Mediathek, too.
On January 28, a family concert with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra will take place in the Great Hall of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, featuring numerous characters from Sesame Street. Works by Leroy Anderson and numerous Sesame Street songs will be played.
More program highlights and information about the 50th anniversary of the German Sesamstraße is available here: NDR.de