Newly Updated:
Welcome to the Isca Morrismen's Website
You have reached the home of the world famous Isca Morrismen. We are traditional Morris Dancers from South Wales and our site provides an overview of the Isca Morrismen and their associated traditions and activities. Please turn to our Contacts and Feedback page if you require contact details for the side and current officers.
To give you a flavour of our music we have attached a variety of folk and morris dance tunes which will play as you examine each web page. We also have a short video extracted from a Japanese television programme which shows the side dancing on May morning at Caerleon Ampitheatre.
Although our site has been set up in English, we welcome and regularly receive visitors from all parts. If you would like a translation then please press the Babel Fish Translate This Page on the relevant flag in the left hand menu options column on any of the website pages. We will then attempt to provide you with an extremely basic form of translation for each page in a variety of languages including French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese and Korean (the translation facility is not yet available in Welsh - although it is available in our range of published leaflets).
The Isca Morrismen were formed in 1976 by three experienced dancers taking our name from the Roman Fortress of the Second Augustan Legion which once stood on the site of the town of Caerleon in the old county of Gwent in South East Wales, UK. We wear the national colours of Wales (red, white and green) and the kit includes a red sash on which is mounted a Roman helmet badge.
The green Monmouth caps which we wear were once knitted in the county (see our Tradition pages) and are an example of one of the earliest surviving medieval knitted garments; extremely handy for the cold Welsh weather! Our kit also includes green britches, white shirts and socks together with a multi-colour tatty coat.
Our dancing season usually extends from May 1st (when we dance at dawn in the Roman Amphitheatre at Caerleon) to about mid-September, every Wednesday evening, at a variety of real ale pubs across Newport, Torfaen and
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Monmouthshire. We can also be seen on some weekends during the summer in various parts of this country and abroad. During the winter the side dances out on Boxing Day, accompanies the Mari Llwyd on Twelfth Night, runs a traditional Wassail and can also be seen at Ales and other traditional events across Britain. As Isca Mummers, we also perform a local Mummers Play for charity each festive period. And on top of all this, the side attends a variety of dance weekends with a number of sides from all over the country. The Isca Morrismen have danced at many different types of event, ranging from Barn Dances and Folk Clubs to Fetes and larger Folk Festivals and have appeared on television and radio on several occasions. In recent years, the side has travelled extensively throughout Wales and the English Counties and have represented Wales at festivals in Belgium, France, Germany, Guernsey and the Czech Republic. The Isca Morrismen are also active with visitors from other countries entertaining folk dancers from various European countries. |
 
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To find your way around our site please use the navigation buttons on each web page, alternatively use our Site Map to go straight to a specific item of interest.
We are a member club of the Morris Ring, a central organisation which represents the views of around 200 clubs, both in the UK and in several other countries. We hope our site provides you with up to date and relevant information on the Isca Morrismen and thank you for visiting us.
We keep this website regularly updated with our details so please tell your friends and visit us again. We have included a very large number of pictures of our activities which are much reduced in size for quick page loading, please let us know if you want a larger higher definition copy of any of them.
We welcome your feedback, so feel free to tell us what you think about our web site by sending your comments and enquiries to our email address: Enquiries@Isca-Morrismen.com
    
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This year we are delighted that our traditional dancing programme is being sponsored by local Welsh Breweries, all of which are producers of excellent real ale and to whom we are grateful for their wholehearted support. Please enjoy their real ales and visit their websites to learn more by clicking on any of the pictures. In addition we acknowledge the encouragement and support of The Gladiator, our practice venue during the winter. |
