Behind the scenes of 'Open Sesame' Arabic version

The muppets are characters from 'Ahlan Simsim', the Arabic language version of the popular U.S. children's programme 'Open Sesame'. For season two, the programme shifted its content to focus on the effects of the pandemic on children, giving them tools on how to cope with the changing realities around them. Some of the episodes consist of staged and real online video-calls, where muppets and guests come up with fun ways to entertain themselves while under quarantine. 'Ahlan Simsim' targets children aged three to eight, and its first two seasons so far reached a total of 3.5 million viewers across the Middle East. Its main goal is to provide children, from both displaced and host communities, with access to educational entertainment programming. To compensate, the programme has increased its efforts to deliver content remotely. The production of the show took preventive measures since the outbreak pandemic by limiting its on-site crew in the Jordanian capital, finding other creative ways to create new content. Season 3 of 'Ahlan Simsim' is currently in production and due to start airing in February 2021.