Kristian Michaels

Crystal Morgan Michaels (born Kenneth Michaels, July 6, 1970), better known by her stage name Kristian Michaels, is a Canadian-American puppeteer, voice actress, actress, and writer. She is best known for her work with the animation studio as well as a prominent recurring Muppeteer. She portrays Wan Wan and was also the voice of U-tan in Peek-a-Boo!, and she has voiced Ariel Silverwing in the Silverwing franchise since 2004.

Early life
Michaels was born in to a Canadian father of Czech origin, Albert Michaels (born Teodor Rovenský), and an American mother, Cindy Hammonds-Michaels, and grew up in,. She was born Kenneth Thomas Michaels and was assigned male at birth before transitioning to female in her early-20s. Her father, who was a neurologist-in-residence at the Auvray University School of Medicine at the time of her birth, had been rescued in the and was adopted by an English couple who subsequently emigrated to. Visual artist and cultural advisor Walton Michaels is her older brother, and fellow voice actress Rachel Michaels is her cousin. She is of Czech-Jewish descent through her father and of English descent through her mother.

Michaels graduated from in Peterborough in 1989, and was her class' valedictorian. She studied at the.

Career
From 1991 onwards under the pseudonym of Louise Farlone, Kristian was a prominent writer of fan-fiction. Her  fanfiction No, You Are Our Hero won the first annual North American Fanfiction Writers' Prize. She has also worked as a modeler on  and has been active in the community.

For several years beginning in the mid-1990s, Michaels worked on several Muppets projects - as a writer (co-writing Journey to Eagle Rock and episodes of Eagle Rock), as a puppeteer (she performed Brenda and the Grand Councilor in Eagle Rock, and was an ensemble Muppeteer for Sesame Park and Wacky Works), and doing photo puppet work for several Muppets books. She also performed a walk-around version of Louis the otter in Sesame Park Live: When I Grow Up and Sesame Park Live: 1-2-3 Imagine! and walk-arounds of Zoe and Rosita at Ontario's Playland. She has sometimes been credited in her Muppets works as "Crystal Michaels", her post-transition real name.

Michaels has also worked as a voice artist with the successful -based animation firm, lending her voice to Squeak! The Mouse Show, Redwall: The Movie and other projects.

Michaels puppeteers Noel the Panther in Between the Lions: Let's Explore and the Between the Lions reboot.

Personal life
Michaels lives in.