Quick Answer
What are toespraken at a Dutch wedding?
Toespraken are the speeches given at a Dutch wedding dinner — but the term also covers the broader Dutch reception custom of friends and family performing prepared skits (sketches), poems, and songs for the couple between courses. Dutch wedding dinners are widely known, including among the Dutch themselves, for running unusually long because of how many of these performances are packed in.
Last updated:
Last updated:
What are toespraken at a Dutch wedding?
Also called: bruiloftstoespraken, wedding sketches, bruiloftsketch.
Ask anyone who has sat through a Dutch wedding dinner and they will mention the toespraken before they mention the food — a structured, often hours-long sequence of speeches, poems, songs, and full costumed skits performed by friends and family, one act after another, between courses. It is one of the most consistently remarked-upon features of a Dutch wedding, treated less as an optional toast or two and more as a full evening program in its own right.
How the evening is structured
A master of ceremonies (often a friend of the couple, not a professional) usually manages the running order, calling up one group after another between courses of the dinner. Content ranges from a straightforward toast to elaborate rehearsed sketches — costumes, props, parody songs about how the couple met — and it is common, not exceptional, for a Dutch wedding dinner to run past midnight largely because of how much of this is scheduled in.
- •Groups of friends or colleagues will often prepare a joint sketch rather than one person speaking alone.
- •It is common practice for the couple to have no idea what most of the toespraken will contain until the night itself.
Planning notes
- •Budget real time for this in the evening schedule — a Dutch reception with many toespraken can easily run two to four hours longer than a dinner without them.
- •Appoint one MC to manage the running order and keep individual acts to a reasonable length, or the evening can run long even by Dutch standards.
- •If sketches involve props, costumes, or music playback, coordinate with the venue/DJ in advance so transitions between acts don't stall the room.
- •Let close friends and family know early if they are expected to prepare something — toespraken are usually planned weeks in advance, not improvised.
Schedule the toespraken into a realistic evening timeline
A long run of speeches and sketches needs its own slot in the schedule — Weddingkart helps you plan the evening program alongside dinner, dancing, and every other moment.
See WhatsApp announcements →Frequently Asked Questions
How long do toespraken usually take at a Dutch wedding?
It varies enormously by how many people prepare something, but Dutch wedding dinners are known for running well past a typical Western wedding dinner's length specifically because of how many speeches and sketches are scheduled between courses.
Are toespraken only speeches, or do they include performances?
Both. The term covers straightforward toasts as well as fuller prepared performances — songs, poems, and costumed skits — which is why Dutch weddings are sometimes described as having an evening "program" rather than just a couple of toasts.
Who is expected to give a toespraak?
There is no fixed rule — parents, siblings, close friends, and colleague groups commonly prepare something. It is typically organised in advance with a master of ceremonies managing the order, rather than left open for anyone to volunteer on the spot.
Related
By Mayank JaiswalLast updated