The Oak Cliff Cultural Center via Google Maps
The Oak Cliff Cultural Center has plenty of events, workshops and exhibits throughout the summer. Here are the highlights:
MONSTRUO DE XIBALBA
Sunday, June 29, 2025, at 6:00 p.m.
Kessler Theater
OCCC is co-partnering with the Oak Cliff Film Festival, Manuela Irene, and Cine Provincia to give away some tickets to the screening of MONSTRUO DE XIBALBA!
Please email andrea.tosten@dallas.gov with your name, email and letting them know you are interested in attending. First come, first served! Confirmed respondents will be contacted.
Rogelio is 8, his parents are never around, and he gets his best birthday gifts from his dentist. This summer he is sent away to his nanny’s hometown, nestled in the Yucatan jungle. Rogelio spends the excruciatingly hot days obsessing over “The Book of Spirits” which awakens in him visions and dreams of ghosts, but above all, of an old man who leaves a trace of death when passing by. Rogelio recounts this to his new Mayan friends, Lucio and Juanito, who say this man is not a dream, he is real and lives in the outskirts of town, he is known as the “Xibalba Monster”. Why these dreams? Rogelio starts to spy on the monster and lives an adventure that will change forever his view on life and death.
MOLCAJETE CLASS
with Chef Maricsa Trejo
Wednesday, July 23, 2025, at 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Oak Cliff Cultural Center
Join OCCC for the next class in our Mortar and Pestle series with James Beard Nominated founder and co-owner of La Casita Bakeshop, Chef Maricsa Trejo, in collaboration with artist, educator and founder of Break Bread, Break Borders, Jin-Ya Huang.
Open to the general public.
The molcajete is adept at everything from grinding dried and fresh chilies to turning onion and garlic into a juicy puree paving the way for complex and aromatic salsas. Learn proper mixing, grinding, and pulverizing techniques for making Salsa Encebollada using a molcajete with Chef Maricsa Trejo. All materials provided.
Salsa Classes
Beginner class: Tuesdays 8-9 p.m.
Advanced beginner class: Thursdays 7-8 p.m.
Oak Cliff Cultural Center
For the beginner class, no experience is necessary. The advanced beginner class is tailored to students with more experience and are ready to take their skills to the next level, building on foundational techniques with more intricate turns, partner work and musicality.
Sign up here.
Chantal Lesley
As I Lay It All To Rest
August 1 – September 12, 2025
Opening reception: August 1, 6 – 8 p.m.
Chantal Lesley (she/her) is an artist based in Austin, TX. As a multicultural, first-generation American born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley along the U.S./Mexico border, Lesley’s work is deeply informed by her experience of being stretched between four cultures. The daughter of Peruvian and German immigrants, she explores themes of identity, belonging, and contemporary social and political issues through her art.
Lesley earned her BFA in Fine Art Photography from Texas State University in 2021, and her work has been exhibited across Texas and the U.S. Notable exhibitions include the Houston Center for Photography (Houston, TX), Craighead Green Gallery (Dallas, TX), Touchstone Gallery (Washington, D.C.), and Humble Arts Foundation (New York, NY). She has been selected for prestigious residencies, including LATITUDE (Chicago, IL), The Line in partnership with Big Medium (Austin, TX), Vermont Studio Center (Johnson, VT), and Château d’Orquevaux (Orquevaux, France). Lesley has also held solo exhibitions at the Dougherty Arts Center (Austin, TX), LHUCA (Lubbock, TX), shedshows (Austin, TX), and Bradbury Art Museum (Jonesboro, AR). Her 2025 accomplishments have included Artist in Residence at KUNSTRAUM in Brooklyn, NY followed by a residency at kala in Berkeley, CA.
