University of Nevada, Las Vegas Bachelor of Fine Arts graduate Parker Coloma is bringing her creative touch to this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland, the world’s largest performance festival. Coloma will be joining the cast of Is It Art?—a CFACoLAB production and live comedy show with elements inspired by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov’s play, The Seagull—as their stagehand, photographer, and graphic designer. The show forms around its characters’ perspectives of what art is—or isn’t—and is set to hit the stage in August. 

Parker Coloma

How did you get involved with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival? 

I was in the bachelor’s of fine arts program, which you have to get accepted into at UNLV, and I was making fine art through photography. Before the program, I was pursuing graphic design, so my background in photography and graphic design came together and provided the skills I needed for this opportunity. 

I received an email from Dave Rowe, the chair of the fine arts department at UNLV, and the process started almost immediately. 

How does your preparation compare to the rest of the cast?

I’ll be mostly documenting by taking pictures [of the show and festival], making posters for Edinburgh to advertise our show, and building up our socials. What everyone else is doing is much more intense in comparison.

For example, Frannie Maas, Greg Prusiewicz, and Louis Kavouros worked on the script together. They wrote the whole show, they chose the cast, they’ve added and cut stuff, and they have so many ideas. The whole process has given me such a deeper appreciation for what they do.

Character development is the most interesting part to me. There are these people that I’ve met, but then they’re performing on stage. It’s still them, but a light shines through them. They work really hard, and they have to memorize the whole script. They’re what really brings everything to life—and the musicians. We have live music, and they’ve composed the music for this show. 

What does this show mean on a European stage? 

We’re so American, and our show is going to be so American, and I love that. There’s an aspect of an influencer character and an AI character, and for some reason those two things are so relevant in America right now. Our show is also a comedy, so it will be interesting to see how the audience will receive it. 

What are you looking forward to most? 

Documenting, especially our live performance and the whole festival, including all the people and the street performers. I’m also looking forward to bonding with all of these wonderful, creative people on the cast. 

Where can we find your work? 

You can find my work on Instagram @ParksPictures or on my website ParkerLStudios.com. 

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The Edinburgh Fringe Festival will take place Aug. 4-28. The CFACoLab’s performance will take place Aug. 4-5, 7-12, and 14-19. Ticket info here. Follow Is This Art? and their adventures in Edinburgh on their Instagram and TikTok: @IsItArtTheShow. 

Photos courtesy Parker Coloma 

Posted by Crystal Lugo

Crystal Lugo studied journalism and English writing at the University of Nevada, Reno. She enjoys writing nonfiction and poetry and dabbles in film photography. When she isn’t brainstorming or photographing, you can find her journaling or daydreaming about travel. She lives in Las Vegas with her kitten, Oliver.

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