Zilker Hillside Theater

Such a great cast and ensemble! Always a professional production. I'm blown away by the local talent! Please donate if you can. Best theater in town. I've seen the Little Mermaid, Mama Mia and Matilda- All spectacular!

The best spot in town for free musicals concerts and more. A wonderful way to spend the evening. Bring snacks, chairs, and enjoy.

Excellent non-profit that brings theater to the public for free. A long long time ago I worked on broadway. This is not broadway. But this is EXCELLENT regional theater. And it’s free. Come support the growing Austin Fine Arts scene. Come to be a part of the community. Come to have a good night on your own, with friends, with kids, with a date… you get the idea. But come. And support this amazing Austin institution.

We came for Matilda show on a Sunday evening. Parking was not an issue and we had a short two minute walk to the hillside theater. It was very organized and they were plenty of seats still open. They had chairs available to rent. It was July, so it was pretty warm, even after the sun went down, but there was a slight breeze and they even handed out fans to help cool us off. We brought a picnic, however, there was a concession stand with snacks available for purchase. There are some drums playing in the background; I believe either a practice or a different show going on somewhere in the park. Overall, it was a great show and we had a great experience.

Every summer, Zilker Theater Productions puts on a fabulous musical in the park. Admission is free, open seating, but they will ask for donations at intermission. Bring a blanket, low back chairs, snacks, and water. It’s very family friendly.

Depending on the notoriety of the show, it can get really crowded so you’ll want to get there early. For good seats at a popular show like Shrek, you may want to set up a blanket around 6. For a less well-known show like All Shook Up, in most cases you could get good seats around 7. The show starts around 8:15, and end time changes per show. All Shook Up ended a bit before 11.

Zilker.org for show details. They’ll update their Facebook page in the event of a delay or cancellation due to weather.

We saw Maltilda, the Musical. It's intermission, and it has been great! Two more weekends to catch this wonderful show.

Fabulous shows! I highly recommend & support the free productions put on here. Come early, bring a picnic & if you bring tall chairs, be courteous & sit in the back. There's nothing ruder than sitting your kids in the grass with an amazing view while people squeeze in late & setup their large, bulky chairs in front of your small children.

Spend a day at Barton Springs and top it off with one of the best shows in town.

I was amazed at the high level of production, the superb talent of the actors and especially the costumes.

The shows are free and fill up very quickly. So - come early (3-4 hours before the show starts) bring a blanket (or chairs) and grab a spot.

You can then go swim in Barton Springs, take a short hike and return to watch the show.

Don't forget your wallet. During intermission the actors walk around with buckets to collect donations. You'll have do much fun, you'd want to tip them well.

Ah.. And pack a picnic to set yourself up for the best dinner and a show.

We went to see Matilda eith my daughter. It was awesome. If you like musical theater this is a place to go every summer. Bring your blanket, snacks and plenty of water

I really like watching plays there. I saw my favorite Disney Princess/ Disney movie The Little Mermaid play yesterday. And it was amazingly awesome!!! I loved it. After the play I got to take a picture with Ariel. We matched.

This centrally located stage usually has plenty of parking and is a great activity to enjoy outside during the summer. The shows are family and dog friendly. Every week there is a different kind of show and they and are not overcrowded (unlike other free outdoor shows during the summer).

The Zilker theater summer musical productions are fantastic! Come early to reserve a spot with a blanket, a picnic basket with a few of your favorite things, and prepare to be entertained. Admission is free and donations keep it running.

They put on a great production for the community. Went to see Matilda and my family loved it. Go 20 mins earlier for parking and bring water as the temps outside get pretty hot. Also they permit low rise chairs or you can rent them by donation. Returning the chairs were really easy after the show. Highly recommended.

Another wonderful experience at the Zilker Hillside Theater! Get there early to claim a spot. At five there are usually some really good "seats" left. Once you stake your claim you can go for a swim in the pool before the show. I recommend you bring a low-legged beach chair for a comfortable experience (camping chairs are too high for people behind you to see.) Also there is now parking fee after 5 on Theater performance nights!

I love this outdoor theater!! I recommend arriving very early, like 2 hours early, set down your towels or blankets for how much space your party needs, and then go swimming or hiking while waiting for the play to start. I arrived 30 min early once on a Saturday, and that still wasn't early enough to not be at the top of the hill. I did enjoy being at the top of the hill though, for both Newsies 2022 and Matilda 2023. The ZTP theater's productions are amazing, because they basically cast the best of the best of the whole area. The live band is also behind the stage, so it doesn't overwhelm the actors' voices and mics. I feel like I could hear everyone clearly. The wind blew by once 2023 and blew a lot of dirt/sand with it because we were in a 40-day drought, but we got through it ok. Just shielded our eyes for a bit. The theater being outdoors is super nice for people who don't want to be stuffed in a crowded room breathing everyone's exhales. The wind also blew on one of the performers during a solo once and it was so pretty the way their costume moved in the wind without any fans necessary!

So even though I wasn't early and say in the back I still had a wonderful view heard everything perfectly. Parking is wide and far but if you use your GPS you can cut through the wooded area off the path and get there faster. So only suggestion is parking wise maybe arrive early but view wise you'll be fine from any spot. Left a little early so didn't have to sit in lines to leave.

The events they have here are fabulous. Arrive early to snag a good spot on the hillside. Blankets are fine, but chairs are more comfortable. Just an overall lovely spot to soak up Austin.

Always a treat. Free to the public. Do not bring dog and please tip well. Handicap access including bathrooms. Come early, drop a blanket and bring din din and have a picnic.

This was my second time here and I was not disappointed. The quality of the costumes and the performances are top notch. Will be back in summer 2020 for Mamma Mia!

Phenomenal shows every summer! Blows away the idea that you get what you pay for. High quality local theater production for free! You will be sitting on a grassy hillside, so make sure you bring a blanket to lay on or a short camping chair (one where the people behind you can still see). Don't be that person that pops out a Godzilla size chair and sits on the front row. Nobody likes that person.