Matthew Marcum Pollock: A Frequency Parable

Last weekend Matthew Marcum’s Pollock: A Frequency Parable kicked off the Hollywood Fringe Festival with a no holds barred whirlwind of abstract vocal styling and in your face charisma. Running for the month of June every Saturday night at The Complex’s Flight Theatre on Santa Monica Blvd, Marcum’s show is a sonic exploration into experimental soundscapes guided by the legendary spirit of modern art hero Jackson Pollock. Billed as an “avant-operatic” sound performance piece Marcum’s show is rooted in the work of experimental composers such as John Cage and Meredith Monk and enhanced by a distinctly rock and roll flavor.

As I entered and took my seat I was greeted by a montage of pre-show music consisting of Led Zepplin, Elton John, and Fleetwood Mac before a hypnotic drumbeat brought up a multi-faceted video and light show. Marcum took the stage holding a paint can and a text book that he opened while launching into a militant dialogue about what it means to be a “modern artist, maki

One of the many reasons I love the Hollywood Fringe Festival is that it reminds me of what Forest Gump once said, “The Hollywood Fringe Festival is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.” In this case, I got to see inside the mind of Matthew Marcum. As it states in my program for the show, “Pollack: A Frequency Parable is an avant-operatic sound performance that explores abstract expressionism…” I can certainly agree with that description.

Behind Mr. Marcum was a large screen and projected on the screen was some fascinating old footage of Jackson Pollack creating one of his art pieces. From time to time the video would evolve into a kaleidoscope visual as Mr. Marcum narrated, sang, and emoted his message of the importance of expressing yourself and how it free us all.

I really enjoyed watching the way Mr. Marcum would open himself up to the audience and express his views and beliefs about the artistic endeavor by using scat and high and low pitched tones

MATTHEW MARCUM – Pollock: A Frequency Parable, produced by The Unconventional Empire, would like to invite you all to see our show. Special Discount Codes are available for select performances. They are listed below.

A special shout out to all the hard working HFF18 Volunteers, We want to show you our appreciation. Hit us up for a special code just for you!

#HFFPOLLOCKPREVIEW – $5 Ticket for Preview Night – June 2nd @ 6:00pm
#HFFPOLLOCK – $2 Off any Show

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Matthew Marcum, Artistic Director and co-founder of The Unconventional Empire, explodes onto the stage using a combination of dialogue, music and experimental sound to explore the world of expressionism in art and paying homage to rock star expressionist-icon, Jackson Pollock. After premiering at The New Experimental Works Festival in San Francisco, CA this piece has continued to pick up steam across the country, appearing at the St. Louis Fringe Festival, where it received the Artistic Innovation award and at the Asheville Fringe Arts Festival, receiving the Fringiest of the Fringe Award, and most recently making it’s Los Angeles debut as part of the Whitefire Theatre Festival in February 2018. Pollock will be featured as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2018 at The Complex – Flight Theatre starting June 2nd at 6:00 p.m. for a special press preview.

All show times listed below:
June 2nd – 6:00pm (Press Preview)
June 9th – 6:00 p.m.
June 16th – 6:00 p.