Leslie Hensley doesn’t do anything halfheartedly.

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Leslie Hensley doesn’t do anything halfheartedly.

From creating, organizing and promoting art shows with Grease Trap Gallery to pro wrestling events for Balthazar’s Ladies of Wrestling (BLOW), she takes everything to the mat and holds it there until it taps out.

Her passion for winning and entertaining adds a dynamic vitality to Oklahoma City’s artistic community. Combine that with her quirky and thought-provoking sense of humor and, well, everyone ends up laughing at themselves. And that’s the best thing that could happen in any creative scene that sometimes might inadvertently end up taking itself too seriously.

In fact, even deadCENTER Film Festival joined her team this year. A short mockumentary of her female pro wrestling group, GrappleHabit: Oklahoma City’s Addiction to BLOW, screens Thursday and Saturday.

Perhaps to celebrate the irony and achievement of showcasing female pro wrestling and her art in an upstart, juried indie film festival, she developed a mini-fest of her own.

Dead Drunk Festival kicks off 4 p.m. Saturday at several locations. Its epicenter is Classen Curve.

HiLo Club, Grease Trap Gallery and The Drunken Fry will feature music, revelry, zombies and its centerpiece, Award Winning, an instal-lation Hensley created for Dead Drunk.

“When you’re a kid, you get trophies for participating in nearly everything, and at some point, you have to decide what to do with them,” Hensley said. “Most people keep them for a while and then finally throw them away.”

Hensley enlisted volunteer help to break down hundreds of ribbons, medals and trophies. So many of us, especially as kids, work hard to be accepted and win only to be “awarded” with a third runner-up ribbon. Award Winning exemplifies the sometimes-contradictory meanings of success. See it 7 p.m. Saturday at Grease Trap.

Hensley said everyone is welcome to stop by and visit. And she wants guests to find a purpose for all the mindless wandering people do at festivals by visiting the zombie-themed drinkfest at The Drunken Fry and shambling over to HiLo Club for live music and DJs.

See; everybody wins.


Dead Drunk Festival

4 p.m. Saturday-2 a.m. Sunday

Classen Curve

$5

Note: Guests must be 21 years old to attend.

Award Winning 7-11 p.m. Grease Trap Gallery 5100 Classen Circle

Zombie Party Starts 4 p.m. Saturday The Drunken Fry 5100 Classen Circle

Bed People and DJ Tom Hudson 10 p.m. Saturday HiLo Club 1221 NW 50th St.


deadCENTER Film Festival

GrappleHabit: Oklahoma City’s Addiction to BLOW double-header showing with The Real Enemy

9:45 p.m. Thursday and 3 p.m. Saturday

MidFirst Bank Theater

Harkins Bricktown Cinemas 16

150 E. Reno Ave.

deadcenterfilm.org

$10-$150

Note: For deadCENTER festival tickets, schedule and more information, check out the official program guide in this issue.


(Photo by Mark Hancock / Composite and design by Christopher Street)

(Photo by Mark Hancock / Composite and design by Christopher Street)

Print headlie: Mortally wasted, Everyone’s a winner at this drinking, music and art festival, and Leslie Hensley has the ribbons to prove it.

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