This article represents part of the author’s ongoing empirical study of the Danish brudevals (bridal waltz) tradition recognized by the means of three characteristic conditions: a specific piece of music by Niels W. Gade, a particular group choreography in which a circle of clapping guests slowly move closer to the newlywed couple and a final section of the ritual in which guests cut the tips of the groom’s socks. The purpose of the article is to highlight how current realisations of the dance reveal the brudevals as a dynamic living tradition and to show the complexity of the political implications it can have when dancing it. Drawing on Sarah Ahmed’s affect theory, the article argues that different negotiations of the brudevals naturalise various understandings of ‘Danishness’. The article argues that an alternative contemporary form of the brudevals, which incorporates a montage of international popular dance and music, produces a version of national identity that underlines the notion of world citizenship as a significant part of being Danish. In realisations of the brudevals danced by same-sex couples, a kind of ‘Danishness’ is produced through affect that naturalises and celebrates Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex and asexual (LGBTQIA) marriages. Finally, a Turkish-Danish brudevals produces a multiculturalist understanding of ‘Danishness’, which does not conform to a specific national cultural heritage but can encompass several ethnic groups.
