Creek Show is lighting up a brand-new stretch of Austin after a year away, with 10 illuminated art installations opening nightly from Friday through Nov. 21 along Waller Creek. For the first time, the event is being held at The Confluence, the stretch of parkland running from Fourth Street to Lady Bird Lake.
The move caps a decade of Creek Show installations at the creek's upper reaches, according to Waterloo Greenway, which describes the shift as the event heading to its most exciting home yet: Waterloo Greenway Phase II, also known as The Confluence. The nonprofit conservancy says this year's show will run nightly from 6 to 10 p.m., as reported by Tribeza, with visitors needing both a ticket and a reservation to attend any given night. General admission costs $12, and children ages 5 and under do not need a ticket. Those who want to skip ahead in line can add a Fast Pass to their General Admission ticket, though it must be purchased separately. All proceeds support Waterloo Greenway Conservancy's work maintaining its 35-acre urban park system, according to the Austin American-Statesman.
Creek Show looked very different when it debuted in 2014, when it was free to the public and offered an optional Fast Pass upgrade, per the Statesman. By 2024, the event had shifted to a mix of free and low-cost ticketed nights, and it then took a one-year hiatus in 2025 before this year's return — a comeback Tribeza describes simply as the show coming back “after a break last year.”
A Night Without a Ticket
Not every night requires paying admission. A community night on Nov. 16 is free to attend, though those reservations have already filled, per the Statesman's reporting on the Creek Show website. CBS Austin separately reported that a Monday community night would offer free access to the exhibition, consistent with that same free-night plan.
Accounts differ slightly on how many nights the exhibition spans. Waterloo Greenway's own materials describe the run as nine unforgettable nights, while CBS Austin calls it a 10-night exhibition featuring 10 illuminated art installations. Either way, the dates run nightly from Nov. 13 through Nov. 21, and the show's theme this year is “It's Alive!,” according to the Statesman.
What's Glowing Along the Creek
This year's 10 installations lean heavily into themes of nature, memory and hidden infrastructure. “Sacred Datura,” created by SOM/Playhou.se, celebrates the life cycle of Datura, a native plant of Texas and the Edwards Plateau. “Shadow Current,” from artist Charlie Alvarado, depicts the communities of washerwomen who lived and worked along Waller Creek from Reconstruction into the 20th century.
“Waller Wildings,” built by Kick Punch Bite, LLC, reimagines the Waller Creek Monster in the style of Japanese designer toy culture. “CONTACT,” created by BRR Architecture, features illuminated sculptural hands inspired by people who touched and shaped Waller Creek — each hand responds with new colors of light when visitors reach out and touch it. “NOT IN MY RUNOFF!,” from the studio UNS, turns attention to the underground channels, pipes and weirs beneath The Confluence, asking what it might look like if that hidden infrastructure were brought into the light.
Other pieces round out the lineup along the water. “Drip-Drop,” made by Lord Aeck Sargent, shows light ripples cascading from beneath a bridge to represent the cyclical movement of water through Austin. “Fractal Time Fish,” from the studio WARRPAINT, depicts Waller Creek's aquatic life as a school of suspended geometric fish. “Petri-Chord,” built by Creek Freaks, features eight illuminated blooms hovering above the water that reflect the changing tempo of the creek below. “Moon Tower 15.1,” created by HKS Architects and DPR Construction, uses folded, layered panels evoking the moon's waxing and waning in honor of the original Moon Tower 15. And “Nocturnal Garden,” from artist Yuluya Lanina, imagines flower sculptures as hybrid botanical and imagined beings.
Getting There and Parking
The Creek Show entrance sits at 703 ½ E. 4th St., at the Sabine Street intersection, per the Statesman's reporting. Visitors looking to drive can park at the Austin Convention Center Garage at 601 E. 5th Street, which offers parking for $5 from 5 to 10 p.m. each night of the event. Parking spaces there are limited, so organizers are encouraging attendees to consider ridesharing instead.
