Swedes learning salsa moves at Stockholm Salsa Dance. Photo: www.stockholmsalsadance.com

Swedes are not normally associated with spontaneity or bursts of self-expression. They generally prefer to blend in rather than stand out or seek attention. 

The same used to be true of dancing – you danced the steps like everyone else, or you were left feeling awkward and self-conscious. And in a country where Lutheran roots run deep, alternative forms of dance were considered by many to be sinful. Now foreign influences and changing attitudes are helping Swedes find their groove.

World dance
Dances with influences from Africa, South and Latin America, and the Middle East have increased in popularity, spreading to Sweden through immigration as well as a desire in native Swedes to learn about other cultures. Swedes are traveling like never before and returning with new inspiration and foreign dance steps.

AnnaLena Tell Eriksson started one of the first African dance schools in Sweden, Dojon, in 1992. She believes that a deeply rooted desire to dance is a part of human nature, and something that has been suppressed in Sweden for a long time. “Swedes are hungry to sing and dance but are hesitant to do so,” she says. “Classes are now being filled up by people who don’t want to hesitate any longer.”

Dojon attracts students of all ages and enrollment has been increasing steadily. “The level of competence for African dance is quite high in Sweden for being in Europe,” Tell Eriksson says.


The TV show "Floor Filler" inspired Swedish viewers to start dancing themselves. Photo: Ulf Berglund / TV3

Anything goes
Popular new dance shows on TV, such as Let’s Dance and Floor Filler, are also helping to raise awareness and interest. Annie Nyblom, who runs SWAY, a dance school just outside of Stockholm specializing in street and show dance, says that these TV shows are elevating the status of dance. “They have brought dance out of the shadows and into focus for the first time, and it’s resulting in a growing self-confidence among the dancing public,” she says.

Nyblom believes that people have an inner need to dance and she is pleased that it’s finally becoming accessible for everyone. “There are many people who want to dance without having to practice technique,” she says. “They just want to exercise and enjoy themselves, and now they feel they can do that.”

A new generation
Another explanation for this dance fever is that young Swedes, unlike their parents, want to be seen and heard – and dance is helping them achieve that. All according to Marianne Eriksson, a dance consultant in the county of Värmland.

“Exciting developments are taking place throughout the country,” she says. “There’s no longer a right or a wrong when it comes to dance.”

In Värmland, a program was started two years ago to encourage teachers to use dance as a way to work with empathy, understanding, anger and other issues. “We’ve noticed a big improvement in this short time,” Eriksson says. “Our goal is to give everyone an opportunity to dance and make it available throughout the country.”


BEEFnoodles on tour with their street dance show in the Swedish county of Värmland. Photo: Lennart Lundqvist 

Some parents seem to have the same faith in the power of dance, so nowadays even babies are moving to the foreign beat – in their mothers’, and the occasional fathers’, arms. Maria Llerena from Cuba offers courses in Stockholm for at-home parents and their children. Her baby salsa courses are designed to help parents stimulate their newborns through song and dance, which is supposed to help in their development.

A question of climate?
For those still suffering from fear of dancing, Gunilla Skog may be able to help. She teaches Latin dance in Stockholm and arranges dance trips to Cuba every year. There, participants spend two weeks getting over their dance inhibitions with an intensive course in salsa and Afro-Cuban dance.

Skog believes that the Swedish climate may be one reason why demand for “hot” dances has grown so much in recent years. “In our society, where winter lasts six months, dance offers warmth and therapy for both the body and the soul,” she says.

Whatever the reason for this dance upswing in Sweden, there’s no denying the fact that non-Swedish rhythms are making bodies sway in every corner of the country.
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Cari Simmons is a freelance writer living in Stockholm. She has taken lessons in ballet, modern dance, jazz, salsa and funk and would like to give Swedish Hambo dancing a whirl.

The author alone is responsible for the opinions expressed in this article.

Classification: A176EN

© Photo 1: www.stockholmsalsadance.com
© Photo 2: Ulf Berglund / TV3
© Photo 3: Lennart Lundqvist