They may look similar to the world-famous group that had children singing and dancing throughout the '90s and 2000s, but Los Wiggles have a different “shimmy shake” to their step.
Made up of four Spanish speakers from Australia and Latin America, the group is part of a new series offering on YouTube targeted at Spanish speakers.
For Red Wiggle Francisco Madrid, a well-known cultural promoter and activist in the Australian Hispanic community, the initiative responds to “a transcendental need to bring diversity to the screen”.
"The Wiggles are aware of the importance of cultural diversity" and therefore are "expanding the audience globally," he tells SBS Spanish.
“We are spreading Hispanic culture, we are speaking Spanish, we are communicating to millions of people the value and the sounds of the Spanish language.
We are creating, playing, singing and dancing in Spanish, which is a fantastic thing in itself
The Wiggles en español Source: Supplied
The new series of Los Wiggles in Spanish will not be geo-blocked, meaning any child can enjoy it from anywhere in the world.
The episodes will be complemented by skits from the Latin American Wiggles series, produced in 2006 for audiences in Latin America, and televised through a cable channel.
"There is a bit of history behind this,” Madrid explains.
"About 15 years ago, the first Wiggles series was filmed in Spanish."
What does it take to become a Wiggle?
Becoming a Wiggle is an intense process.
Prior to filming the first series in 2006, The Wiggles show producers held auditions attended by hundreds of people from the Hispanic community.
“It was an extraordinary experience because, for me, a person so committed and involved with the Latin American community, it was impressive to see so much great talent of Hispanic origin in Australia at the auditions,” Madrid recalls.
From there, those selected participated in a “Wiggles camp”, where they received dance, singing, and choreography lessons.
“From the camp, they chose four Wiggles: two girls and two boys. And one of them was me!” Madrid says, super proud of wearing the red skivvy.
The Venezuelan-born actor believes he was chosen to be part of the cast because of his ability to connect with his inner child.
"I use that energy, of my inner child, to tell stories. I leave the 'adult Frank Madrid' behind and give in to my 'child Francisco Madrid',” he explains.
Blue Wiggle Anthony Field, a founding member of the original Wiggles, explains that "the Spanish-speaking Wiggles are exactly what the Wiggles are all about. And that's good quality children's Entertainment".
The Wiggles en español Source: Supplied
He tells SBS Spanish that in addition to having learned his first Spanish phrases, such as “Vamos, Wiggles” (Let's go, Wiggles) and "Perdí mi voz!" (I have lost my voice), his Spanish-speaking Wiggle peers have shown him "the true meaning of community”.
He also praises the energy, vitality and sense of identity of the Los Wiggles members.
"All our wonderful Spanish-speaking Wiggles come from different backgrounds of the Spanish-speaking world, but they're also proud of where they've come from, and they're very proud to be bringing themselves to the world, just as I am. This is part of our Wiggle brand".
For Madrid, it is an honour to work with Field, as he brings his knowledge, experiences, and training as an early child educator to the series, he says.
“I was in the park the other day, and a girl told me that her mother had been a kindergarten student of Anthony Field. There is a tradition of very serious education and, in that sense, the songs and the contents have that message that has to do with early education, to give children tools to develop their imagination.
“We sing about the letters of the alphabet, the numbers, the seasons of the year… Of the situations that children begin to experience: how to cross the street, look to the right and left, and all those everyday things we do, but in Spanish.”
Diversity with energy, and education with identity
The cast of Los Wiggles also reflects the diversity of the Spanish-speaking community in Australia, which encompasses more than twenty Latin American countries and Spain, plus first and second-generation migrants: Zoe is of Uruguayan and Australian descent and Katty is a second-generation Australian from Peruvian parents, Fernando is Mexican-American and Francisco is Venezuelan.
Like The Wiggles, each member of Los Wiggles has their own quirk.
Katty is always very sleepy, but she is also an incredibly energetic dancer. Zoe is a fabulous flamenco singer and dancer. Fernando loves to sing and tell stories, and Francisco is the king of the air guitar.
In addition to having characters that reflect diverse backgrounds, accents, and migration and settlement experiences, Los Wiggles have been gender-balanced from their inception.
"The Spanish-speaking Wiggles are gender-balanced. They've got two women to men and, of course, they come from different backgrounds. They are not just from one area of the world and they embrace their differences and their differences come together. And that's a great lesson for all of us. It's very important," Field explains.
Madrid agrees.
I think it is very important that there is diversity within the group. When this series was made, it was already very special that two girls and two boys were chosen. There was female representation in the games and that made a big difference.
Australian children's entertainers The Wiggles, Murray Cook (Red Wiggle), Greg Page (Yellow Wiggle), Jeff Fatt (Purple Wiggle), and Anthony Field (Blue Wiggle). Source: AP
“The children of the world are going to have the opportunity to listen to topics in Spanish, stories in Spanish, and I think it has a number of benefits. First, children who speak any language will be exposed to another language and I am sure it will spark their curiosity about learning Spanish,” he explains.
"For a child, seeing a Wiggle speak the language of their parents and represent their cultural heritage has a very important place in terms of their education."
A little history
The Wiggles, the world's most popular children's entertainment group, has educated, entertained and enriched the lives of millions of preschool-aged children around the world for three decades. Even parents who were once fans of the group as children enjoy the same songs from their childhoods with their children.
The group says they've sold more than 30 million albums and DVDs, plus eight million books worldwide, in addition to accumulating more than one billion music streams and two billion views on YouTube.
