More than 500 objects spanning ‘Sesame Street,’ ‘Fraggle Rock,’ ‘Labyrinth’ and ‘The Dark Crystal’ feature in ‘Make, Believe, Magic,’ the most comprehensive exhibition of the company’s work to date.

Kermit the Frog, Big Bird and the creatures of Fraggle Rock, Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal have descended on Brisbane, with GOMA unveiling its major new Jim Henson Company exhibition on Friday morning.

Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company was officially launched at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art ahead of its public opening on Saturday, Sept. 12.

Developed by QAGOMA in collaboration with The Jim Henson Company, the world-exclusive exhibition brings together more than 500 objects spanning the company’s 70-year history, including puppets, animatronic creatures, costumes, props, drawings, moving-image material and large-scale sets.

Among the familiar faces are Kermit, Big Bird, Mr. Snuffleupagus, Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster and Elmo, alongside Gobo, Red, Mokey, Wembley and Boober from Fraggle Rock. The exhibition also ventures into the considerably darker fantasy worlds of Labyrinth, Farscape and The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.

QAGOMA director Chris Saines said the exhibition represents the most comprehensive collection of The Jim Henson Company’s creative output assembled to date.

“The exhibition transports visitors from the everyday into the many extraordinary worlds created by the masters of puppetry at The Jim Henson Company throughout its 70-year history,” Saines said.

“With surprises around every corner, Make, Believe, Magic assembles the most comprehensive collection of the Company’s creative output to date and tells the story of a revolution in puppetry that created some of the most cherished characters in screen history.”

While the characters provide the immediate attraction, the exhibition also looks behind the curtain at the filmmaking and puppeteering techniques that allowed Jim Henson and his collaborators to create them.

The Jim Henson Company CEO Lisa Henson said the exhibition celebrates both her father’s creative philosophy and the generations of artists who have subsequently built upon it.

“For over 70 years countless creatives have dedicated their artistry to reflect my father’s fundamental ideas about art, storytelling, characters and worldbuilding; including the idea that the serious work we do — even when making sometimes not-so serious productions — can positively influence the world,” Henson said.

“Make, Believe, Magic is a celebration of all these collaborators as well as the incredible fans from all over the world who have supported our work. These projects embody our continuing creative and innovative legacy and honour the true spirit of Jim Henson.”

Spread across GOMA’s ground floor, the exhibition is divided into three interconnected sections examining the development of the company’s puppetry, its performers and creative processes, and its continuing experimentation with digital technology.

One of its centrepieces is a world-first presentation of original sets from Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock. Transported to Australia from the series’ Canadian production base, Doc’s Workshop and the cavernous Great Hall have been installed at “puppeteer height,” allowing visitors to explore not only the familiar environments but the backstage corridors normally hidden from audiences.

Exhibition curator and QAGOMA Curatorial Manager Amanda Slack-Smith described the installation as a rare opportunity to experience the practical realities behind the illusion.

“The sets offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to navigate these unique environments, including their rarely seen backstage puppeteer corridors, in an authentic and immersive behind-the-scenes experience,” Slack-Smith said.

The exhibition culminates in an expansive installation devoted to The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, populated by Gelfling and Skeksis characters, a towering Landstrider and the Crystal of Truth.

The show also charts the evolution of Henson’s approach from the pioneering television puppetry developed by Jim Henson and Jane Nebel in the 1950s through to the combination of practical effects, animatronics and digital techniques now employed by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop.

The exhibition extends into GOMA’s Australian Cinémathèque, where more than 90 films will screen across three free programs exploring The Jim Henson Company and the wider history of puppetry on screen. The programs include Screened to be Believed: The Jim Henson Company, Where the Wild Things Are Made: Jim Henson’s Creature Shop and Beyond Henson: Puppetry and World Cinema.

Queensland tourism authorities are also treating the exhibition as a significant cultural tourism drawcard. Tourism Minister Andrew Powell said the government expects it to generate as many as 110,000 visitor nights and provide a A$22 million boost to the state’s economy.

The exhibition arrives during Brisbane Festival and immediately before the Queensland school holidays, with an accompanying program including appearances by representatives of The Jim Henson Company, puppetry activities, family events and a six-night run of GOMA Friday Nights in March and April next year.

For GOMA, however, the scale of Make, Believe, Magic is matched by the unusual breadth of its subject. The exhibition moves from some of the most recognisable characters ever created for children’s television to the elaborate fantasy filmmaking of Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, while revealing the craftspeople, performers and technology behind them.

Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company runs exclusively at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art from Sept. 12, 2026 to April 18, 2027.