Circle of Lights: Indy’s Biggest Holiday Tradition

Downtown Indy, Inc. 59^th annual Circle of Lights ^® presented by IBEW 481.

Quick Details:

Date: Friday, Nov. 26, 2021 
Time: The Entertainment starts at 7 pm, and the flip is switched at 8 pm
Where: Monument Circle or at home on WTHR Channel 13

Downtown Indy Inc.’s Circle of Lights ^® presented by IBEW 481 – Indy’s most time-honored holiday tradition – returns Friday, Nov. 26, the day after Thanksgiving. The celebration will once again be a live, in-person event on Monument Circle, as well as a made-for-TV special seen exclusively on WTHR Channel 13.

Related: Win a VIP Circle of Lights Prize Package (Contest Runs through Nov. 15)

The in-person event on Monument Circle will include live entertainment, holiday presentations and festive food and beverages, culminating with the arrival of Santa and the flip of the switch shortly before 8 p.m. 

Our city’s greatest musical acts, chosen from the Tom Wood Talent Search, are sure to get you in the holiday spirit! Additionally, the entertainment will feature The Doo Band. Plus, for the first time, the Christ Church Cathedral’s Choir, Choristers, and Coro Latinamericano will grace the Circle of Lights stage. Also, representing the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s Yuletide Celebration, we will be joined onstage by T.3! The incredible trio of tenors wowed audiences on America’s Got Talent with their giant sound and pitch-perfect harmonies. Following those acts, Santa will help flip the switch with the child chosen through the AES Indiana Coloring Contest, illuminating Monument Circle. And new this year, the lighting of the Monument will be accompanied by a Grand Finale with fireworks and true revelry, presented by the 2022 College Football Playoff’s Indianapolis Host Committee.   

Coloring Contest to help Santa Flip the Switch

one lucky child will have the opportunity to “flip the switch” for the Downtown Indy, Inc. Circle of Lights® presented by IBEW 481 on Friday, Nov. 26. Children ages 3 – 12 can enter the AES Indiana Coloring Contest, which runs Nov. 1-16, by decorating the official coloring sheet of a large holiday light bulb.

CLICK HERE to download the full coloring sheet and entry form. 

Visit Monument Circle throughout the holiday season

Sightseers will be able to take in this brilliant spectacle throughout the holiday season, lit until Dec. 30.  Travelocity named the Circle of Lights^® one of the top five “must-see Christmas trees” in the nation.  USA Today also listed the Circle of Lights^® as one the “10 Best Holiday Attractions.”

Monument Circle also showcases new lighting exhibits, video projections and holiday music every day and evening as part of the multi-million dollar Shining A Light on Arts and Culture program on the Circle. Each evening, a special seasonal video presentation plays celebrating the season’s religious holidays, along with the nightly “Signature Salute” honoring Indiana military veterans. These immersive video-mapped displays put Monument Circle visitors in the middle of a captivating, socially distanced snow globe!