The fixed ekkyklema

"Machinery helps make the experience magical for the audience. The ancient Greeks used the mechane, a simple crane, to carry an actor down from above as well as the ekkyklema, a wagon entering from the skene, to show a tableau of the dead. Medieval theatre artists/engineers used several types of machines to manipulate the actors and for special effects. Perhaps one of the most intriguing machines to move actors was the treadmill, specifically made for the production of Ben Hur."

Not quite in the Ben Hur range, but still a moving tableau mused Sam Renseiw while capturing treadmill running footage from the middle of a busy urban bicycle lane. View the cyclic nature vivante by clicking here or enter the sidewalk above. ( patafailm # 329, 02'17'', 10.8 MB, Quicktime/Mov - Streaming Flash version for PC available at Blip.tv)