‘The Addams Family” Musical: A Problematic Portrayal of Hispanic Accents

Directed by Nick Vargas, Wheelock Family Theater’s production of “The Addams Family” has many elements that could contribute to a fun and enjoyable show — but its thoughtless portrayal of the character Gomez Addams severely damages its overall impact.

Before the performance starts, a spooky voice gives the pre-show announcements in a suitably dramatic way that builds excitement for the musical. By telling audience members to turn off cell phones because notification noises might scare the dead, the voice sets the tone of the musical just as it is about to start.

When the music begins, the first visual element on stage is a hand: the famous hand of The Addams Family. Then, the curtains open, and in the middle of the stage, the mythic family members stand in a beautiful, picturesque position. As the musical is directed towards a young audience, the scenic and costume design are like candy for the eyes: They are pretty, enjoyable, and suit the personality of each character.

The musical is perfect for children and young adult audiences, and it handles important topics like young love, romantic relationships, and family relationships. It is both relatable and entertaining, and it presents a peculiar and recently popular female role model, an 18-year-old Wednesday Addams.

However, the musical fails in its treatment of Hispanic accents and Latino identity. One of the lead characters, Gomez Addams (Luis Negrón) is Latino, and he sometimes has an accent while speaking English. I emphasize the “sometimes” because Negrón uses the accent selectively: When he delivers funny lines that aim to make the audience laugh, he uses a strong Hispanic accent, but when he deals with more serious topics like love or heartbreak, he suddenly loses his accent. Due to this poor choice, the play implies that Hispanic accents are always funny and cannot be taken seriously.

This specific detail may seem small to those who live in a country where their first language is the dominant language, but as a Mexican who just moved to the U.S. to receive a college education, I felt uncomfortable seeing my accent and my identity treated as jokes. I cannot turn my accent on and off like Gomez Addams. When I want to be taken seriously, native English speakers often just focus on my accent (and comment on how they find it funny or exotic), and then forget what I am saying. It hurts, and it also hurts seeing a Latino character portrayed that way in a play meant for kids, perpetuating stereotypes and encouraging the damaging idea that a person should not use an accent if they want to be taken seriously. It is not a good idea to use an identity and an accent as comic relief, especially in a play that is presented in a city and a country full of international people with a wide variety of accents.

The musical is good; it is almost an ideal piece for a family to see during Halloween season, and it also parallels the rising popularity of The Addams Family after the release of “Wednesday” on Netflix last year. I do not want to diminish or overlook the incredible work of the cast and the team that made the show possible; all of the people working on this piece are very talented, and the final product reflects that. However, it is important for theatermakers — particularly at a family theater — to be conscious of the message they send to their young audiences with their use of the Hispanic accent. I encourage the team behind “The Addams Family” to make Gomez Addams speak with a consistent accent throughout the whole performance because theater can either be a great opportunity to make a positive statement or a dangerous way to reinforce negative stereotypes.