Canal Convergence opens Friday, November 6, and runs ten nights through November 15 at the Scottsdale Waterfront. If you live close enough to go on any night you like, the weekend has always looked like the safe pick. That's because the stage, the headliners and the longer hours all landed there. This year's schedule changes that. A weeknight now gives up one hour, and that hour has no fire show in it. On Thursday, November 12, the Herberger Stage has weekday programming of its own for the first time.
This is the 15th Canal Convergence, and it overlaps with the City of Scottsdale's 75th anniversary. The theme is "Western Nature," which Scottsdale Arts describes as artwork about "water resources and native flora and fauna" and the cultures and histories of the American West, the Southwest and Arizona. The outdoor art is free every night.
The hour you lose on a weeknight is the one without fire
Here are the published hours:
| Nights | Dates | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Friday–Saturday | Nov. 6–7 | 6–10 p.m. |
| Sunday–Thursday | Nov. 8–12 | 6–9 p.m. |
| Friday–Saturday | Nov. 13–14 | 6–10 p.m. |
| Closing Sunday | Nov. 15 | 6–9 p.m. |
Six of the ten nights end at 9 p.m. Walter Productions' fire shows go on nightly at 6:30, 7:30 and 8:30 p.m., and the artists choreograph them live. All three start inside the weeknight window. So a Tuesday visit gets the same three fire shows as a Saturday. The weekend's extra hour, from 9 to 10, comes after the last fire show of the night.
The beer and wine garden next to the Herberger Stage at Soleri Plaza also runs every night. It has food trucks, dessert vendors, wine, beer, canned cocktails and soft drinks. The fire, the food and the art are the core of the event, and on a weeknight you get all of it in a slightly shorter evening.
What's new is weekday programming on the Herberger Stage
In past years, the stage was the main thing that set weekends apart. Scottsdale Arts' September 30 announcement says weekday activities at the Herberger Stage are new this year. Two of them are on the same night.
On Thursday, November 12, Arizona State University FIDM students present "WEARABLE WILDS: Fashion, Technology & Ecologies of the West." It's a fashion show that uses wearable technology to imagine the West as "a laboratory for the future." The same night, Phoenix-based Indigenous designer Jeremy Arviso brings selected garments from his "Working West" Dress-Up Space to the stage for his own fashion show.
"Working West" is also a hands-on space you can visit on any night. Arviso curated it with Diné hatter Geri James and Diné weaver Gloria Fain, around Arizona's working landscape, reclaimed materials and contemporary Indigenous design. In the Scottsdale Arts announcement, Arviso describes it this way:
"'Working West' is an invitation to customize, create and wear your story."
On November 12 you can try on pieces in the Dress-Up Space and then watch some of them on the runway, all in one visit.
The workshops also lean toward weeknights
Scottsdale Arts counts nearly 100 workshops, performances, tours and other activities across the ten nights. The theme-driven workshops at the Nationwide Innovation Zone are led by Indigenous and Latinx artists and organizations. Several of the dated ones fall on weeknights or the closing Sunday:
- Monday, Nov. 9: painting with natural pigments, with artists from the Center for Imagination in the Borderlands
- Tuesday, Nov. 10: beading with Maxica Colectivo
- Sunday, Nov. 15: bandana printing with Jeremy Arviso
Check the pricing before you count on walking in. Performances, drop-in workshops and some other activities are free. Nightly art tours, ticketed workshops and certain special events require tickets, and paid workshops need registration. Ticketed events are already on sale. A weeknight workshop may also mean a smaller group around the table. Expect that, but don't count on it.
The Scottsdale Arts Roundabout at Marshall Way also runs community-partner activities on the theme. Hosts include CALA Alliance, Monarca Center for Healing and Justice, Art Heals Arizona, RUMBO, Puente, Cahokia, Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale, Arizona Dream Act Coalition and S'edav Va'aki Museum.
A Thursday, November 12 route
If you pick one weeknight, this is the one that brings everything above together. Here's a three-hour plan built on the published schedule:
- Arrive by 6 p.m. and catch the 6:30 fire show first. The weeknight closes at 9, so you don't have time to waste early.
- Walk the canal between Scottsdale Road and Goldwater Boulevard. The installations are in and above the Arizona Canal and along the paths and bridges.
- Stop at the "Working West" Dress-Up Space before the fashion shows so you know the garments when they reach the stage.
- Settle in at the Herberger Stage for "WEARABLE WILDS" and Arviso's show, with food from the beer and wine garden.
- Finish at the 7:30 or 8:30 fire show, depending on how the stage schedule runs.
Scottsdale Arts hasn't announced specific stage times for the November 12 fashion shows, so check the event site the week of.
As you walk, these are the installations on the 2026 lineup:
- "Another Slice of Reality: An Evolving Nature," Shaoyu Su x LedPulse, Tempe
- "Dream Rider" and "Sky Wrangler," William Nemitoff with Curious Form, New Orleans
- "Desert Choir," Ottomata
- "grandmother turtle," In Theory Art Studios with Laura Tohe and Nora Naranjo-Morse
- "the weight of light," In Theory Art Studio
- "KaKtos," Amigo & Amigo
- "Prairie Fire," True North Absurdities
- "The Way The West Was Sold," Jolly Productions
- "Western Fire Garden," Walter Productions
- The Chalk River Labs piece from Melbourne, Australia, which Scottsdale Arts lists as "PERIGEE" on its artworks page and calls "APOGEE" in its press releases
What still belongs to the weekend
Live music remains a weekend feature. Arizona-based and regional acts play the Herberger Stage on weekends, with headliners QVLN, a Latin pop act, and Nodaway, an indie rock band. Dance falls at the end of the run, too. NicoleOlson|MovementChaos performs at the Chalk River Labs installation on Saturday, November 14. On closing night, Sunday, November 15, Scottsdale Community College Dance gives two site-specific performances at 7 and 8 p.m.
If you can go twice, a sensible split is November 12 for the fashion shows and the closing Sunday for the dance and Arviso's bandana workshop. Both nights close at 9 p.m.
Parking and Old Town offers on the walk over
The Arizona Republic listed four parking options for this year's event:
- Scottsdale Waterfront underground garage, 7135 E. Camelback Road
- Craftsman North Lot, 4252 N. Craftsman Court
- Galleria Garage, 4301-4343 N. Scottsdale Road
- Fifth Avenue Garage, 7143 E. Fifth Ave.
The official event page also links an interactive map with the info booth, parking, installation sites, rest areas and the retail area. Solstice Park, at 4420 N. Scottsdale Road, is listed with the event location.
If you'd like dinner or dessert before the 6:30 fire show, Old Town Scottsdale's Canal Convergence page lists event-related offers from nearby businesses. These include Chin Up Donuts, ZuZu, Malee's on Main, Cobre Kitchen + Cocktails, Prep & Pastry, Mavericks of Scottsdale, Gorgeous Things, Bella Fine Art, Giving Bracelets and Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West. Some offers on that page have already expired, so ask the business about terms before you order.
If you're one of the neighbors who can walk to the Waterfront on a Thursday night, that kind of access matters when a home near Old Town goes on the market. If you'd like to talk through what it means for your home, or for one you're considering, Kelleigh Evans is glad to help. Schedule a Consultation, and I'll respond quickly.
