Jennifer Barnhart

Jennifer Barnhart (born March 11, 1972) is an American actress and puppeteer, with a portfolio of television and theatre performances.

Early life Barnhart was born and grew up in Hamden, Connecticut. She graduated from the University of Connecticut with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting with a concentration in puppetry.

Career Puppetry career In 1996, Barnhart began her puppeteer career performing on Once Upon a Tree performing Mara the Beaver and Mrs. Peeper the Owl. She made her Broadway debut in 2003 and is a featured performer in the Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q, in which she also appeared Off-Broadway. She was a regular puppeteer on the Nickelodeon series Oobi, playing Mrs. Johnson and various incidental characters. She also stars as Cleo on PBS's literacy education series, Between the Lions, and performed the puppetry for Kanga and Owl on Disney Channel's The Book of Pooh. In 2010, she portrayed Chicago Police Department detective Lorna Diamond in the Law & Order: SVU episode, "Behave".

TV credits The Muppet Show, 2026 Helpsters, 2019–2023 Julie's Greenroom, 2017–2019 The Chica Show, 2012–2014 Law & Order: SVU, 2010 Lomax, the Hound of Music, 2008 Johnny and the Sprites, 2007 Law & Order: SVU, 2006 Exposing the Order of the Serpentine, 2006 Sesame Street, 2001–present Smart Cookies, 2016 Oobi, 2000–2005 The Book of Pooh, 2001 Between the Lions, 2000–2010 Bear in the Big Blue House, 1997–1998 Once Upon a Tree, 1996