The Fringe of Colour Database
On this page…
About the database
Hosted on Google Sheets, our database exists to highlight and support shows and events taking place at the Edinburgh festivals in August where 50% or more of the performers or speakers on stage are Black people or People of Colour.
If it's a one person show, that person must be a Person of Colour, if it's a double act, one of the performers must be a Person of Colour, if it's a 20-person cast, at least 10 of those people must be People of Colour. If it's a book event, half of the people or more on the stage, including the chair (!), must be People of Colour.
Why 50%? We feel this is the minimum proportion of performers necessary to qualify a show or event as centring Black people and People of Colour.
The database is publicly accessible, and this year we welcome artists and creatives taking part in three festivals (the Edinburgh Fringe, the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh International Book Festival) to add their shows and events to the spreadsheet themselves, via an online form.
The Fringe of Colour Database is volunteer-run and community-dependent, relying mostly on crowdsourcing information. We hope you enjoy using it - and if you do, please spread the word! Have a great time in Edinburgh, or at home if you are watching online.
How to use the Fringe of Colour Database
Each spreadsheet is organised according to categories of shows or events, to help facilitate searches (e.g., comedy, theatre, kids shows).
Not familiar with Google Sheets? No problem. After navigating to the page of the festival you are looking for (Edinburgh Fringe, Edinburgh International Festival or Edinburgh International Book Festival), you can use the category sub-headings to find what you are looking for by scrolling down the page, or you can use the search function if there is a particular show, performer or event you are looking to get information on.
To use the search function, click Ctrl+F on a PC, or Cmd + alt + Space on a Mac. Then just type in a keyword like "Desiree", "Taiwan" or "Magic".
For companies, collaborators, producers, promoters, talent scouts and more…
If you are looking to find Black artists or Artists of Colour in the UK and beyond, the Fringe of Colour Database provides a great resource for your searches. Simply scroll to the performance category you are looking for and have a look at who took a show to Edinburgh in previous years (or who joined from online). Do keep in mind that a lot of artists and creatives cannot make it to the Edinburgh festivals, so this is by no means an exhaustive list of great talent!
Explore our spreadsheets
This year's spreadsheet is coming soon. Take a look at previous years...
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![Digital graphic reading "Loading..."]()
2023
This year’s spreadsheet - explore the shows and events at the Edinburgh Fringe, the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh International Book Festival!
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2022
Last year’s spreadsheet - Shows and events at the 2022 Edinburgh Festivals where at least 50% of the performers on stage were Black people or People of Colour.
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![Screenshot from the 2019 Fringe of Colour spreadsheet]()
2019
Shows and events at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe where at least 50% of the performers on stage were Black people or People of Colour.
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![A screenshot of the Google Sheet for Fringe of Colour's 2018 spreadsheet]()
2018
Where it all began! The very first Fringe of Colour spreadsheet, linking audiences and artists with our hashtag #FringeOfColour.
Add your show
This year, Fringe of Colour welcomes performers to add to the Fringe of Colour spreadsheet themselves, in a move towards being more reliant on crowdsourcing contributions than big demands on a small team.
Can’t access the form below on this page or having trouble reading it on your phone or desktop? Try here on the Google Forms page.