Zoot Suit

El Pachuco opens the play in Spanish without translating into English for a United States audience. This demonstrates that the play will be privileging the Chicano narrative, unlike most mainstream U.S. plays and films that not only feature primarily white actors but are almost all produced in English. Since the United States has no official language, the validation of Spanish as an equal language helps to establish the play’s argument that Mexican Americans are Americans. It destabilizes the false perception that the word “America” applies only to the United States.

The use of untranslated Spanish throughout the play also creates a privilege of accessibility to those who are bilingual both onstage and in the audience. When George first meets with Henry and his co-defendants in jail, Tommy and Joey use Spanish to speak confidentially. George can’t earn their trust until he demonstrates that he also speaks Spanish. However, although George speaks Spanish, he adds, “I’m not much on your pachuco slang” (25). The zoot suiters use a vernacular based on rhyming, adding an additional layer of coding. Language as a signifier of belonging is more important than actual race or nationality, as illustrated by Tommy, who is white but grew up in the barrio and uses the language and pachuco lingo fluently.