A marathon

of joy

Imagine a five-hour street party centred around an epic feat of endurance. Hundreds of people celebrate and cheer for a runner, who is running a marathon – yes, the full 42,2 kilometres – on a treadmill, on a stage, in the middle of the city centre. Throw in professional dancers, a bit of gold, glamour and Greek Mythology, and a smooth MC.

It’s a lot, but ‘a lot’ is really the essence of Fun Run, the massive international arts project and brainchild of Tristan Meecham and Bec Reid from All The Queens Men. The Bergen edition marks the project’s tenth iteration.

‘Every Fun Run is a truly unique experience, tailored specifically to the location it takes place in. With the runner onstage are hundreds of representatives from local community groups, who show off their incredible skills,’ says Bec Reid from All The Queens Men. 

‘The runner’s endurance, their journey, is buoyed and lifted up by this partnership between the individual and the collective,’ explains Meecham.

Invitations into the arts

All The Queens Men describe their practice as making art with and for people. In their projects, they delve deep, collaborating with local groups, inviting them onto the stage of contemporary arts institutions to do what they already do, but reframed within a contemporary arts context.

In late 2024, Meecham and Reid spent weeks in Bergen meeting with community groups of all ages; dancers, sports clubs and practically every constellation that might be interested in taking part.

’We met some amazing people and can’t wait to see them up on that stage in the city centre. We are really interested in putting that all into a soup pot and stirring it all up. It’s about creating a truly accessible platform. As one person we met in Bergen told me: “I've never thought of my physical practice as art, and I've never been invited into the arts”,’ says Reid. 

A work of scale

It all started at Melborne’s Next Wave Festival, which is known for its support for young artists. Fun Run was Tristian Meecham’s entry. 

‘The festival theme was No Risk Too Great. I’d maybe watched too much Jane Fonda, and I was interested in what would happen if you ran till you could run no more. The endurance, the performance art tropes of the body and what happens to the body as it breaks down.’

Meecham was producing, figuring out the practicalities, fund-raising and trying to convince community groups and friends to be part of the event, still not quite certain about how it would all come together. All meanwhile training to be up on that treadmill himself. In the spirit of Fun Run, it was a lot, and in the process, he met Reid. 

‘I was going to a rehearsal for the dancers, and for some reason, she laughed. I think I’d made the dancers march on the spot and turn around to do exactly the same thing. Bec just said: I’m going to come in and choreograph this project for you,’ says Meecham.

That was the beginning of their friendship and creative marriage together.

‘Right from the start, Fun Run was a work of scale. It took over a public space, in the busiest square in the city and involved hundreds of people in that first presentation. We just pressed play and went for it, and there's a real excitement in that too’, says Reid.

Just going for it worked. Melbourne embraced Fun Run, and people stayed for hours to watch Meecham run and the massive spectacle surrounding him. Soon afterwards, another arts festival in Australia called. Others soon followed, and Fun Run has now been created, celebrated and run in South Korea, Finland and Taiwan and several Australian cities.

‘I’ve always had a deep passion for art outside of black boxes, outside of theatres. It’s about community, accessibility and visibility in the public sphere, in a contemporary performance art setting. The very first Fun Run created all of the elements that we emphasize within our practice, though maybe we weren't so experienced at talking about it then,’ says Reid. 

From Athens to Bergen

The marathon isn't just a physical challenge; it's laden with metaphor.

’The marathon signifies the modern measurement of endurance, of overcoming an obstacle, a transformation and a serious commitment,’ notes Meecham.

The performance weaves in the story of Pheidippides, the Athenian foot soldier who was sent to Athens to announce the Persians’ defeat in the battle of Marathon. According to legend, he ran the full 42 kilometres without pausing and died upon arrival. 

‘He was an ordinary man tasked with an extraordinary mission, culminating in tragedy. This narrative adds a layer of theatricality and underscores the very real physical stakes involved in doing Fun Run. The runner isn't a professional athlete, echoing Pheidippides' everyman status, and the tension is palpable,’ says Meecham.

He knows this tension better than anyone. The Bergen edition of Fun Run is the first time he is not on that treadmill onstage himself. Instead, the runner is Håkon Gisholt, a former police officer, social activist, and author who became blind as an adult. (Read an interview with Håkon here.)

‘We’re very excited about this new development of Fun Run. Meeting Håkon was more than special. The way he has chosen to use his personal story to help others, and give back to the community, while combating issues that to most people would be quite the challenge, is an inspiration. And the fact that he literally is a marathon runner – but not a professional athlete – means that he knows what it takes in terms of commitment and endurance. He understands what we’re trying to do’, says Meecham.

‘He has real generosity and a great, dry sense of humour. He's undercutting and doesn't place himself anywhere near this position of grandeur or hero narrative, but just has an ability to share and commune with other people. I think all of those characteristics are are only going to add to the way that we'll be able to make the make the work feel even more alive in Bergen, with the whole community cheering for a true local hero on his quest, says Reid.