El Salon is San Ysidro’s first community theatre space. Inaugurated by Casa Familiar in 2020, it stands as a part of the multidisciplinary project, Living Rooms at the Border, designed by Estudio Teddy Cruz + Fonna Forman in partnership with Casa Familiar, and the support of Studio E Architects. Design and construction of Living Rooms at the Border was funded by the PARC Foundation and a grant from ArtPlace America, among other sources, and financial support from Civic San Diego, Capital Impact Partners and Citi Community Capital.
El Salon is a restoration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, built in 1927, and is now a multi-media theatre performing space.
We host theatre & dance performances, events, and workshops by different companies throughout the year.
Coming Soon to our theatre:
Imparted in collaboration with UCSD Center on Global Justice.
The UCSD-Casa Community Station is a partnership combining cultural, social, and economic programming co-curated between Casa Familiar, UC San Diego and the community of San Ysidro. Projects involve workshops, performances, & outreach.
El Salon extends its services as a performing arts space for collaborators. Each year, we offer residency programs to performance companies and collectives to create, & execute productions. Our space has held a wide variety of events. Including but not limited to: Concerts, art installations, exhibitions, theater performances, dance, screenings, workshops, and seminars.
Residency Highlights
Dialogos Danzados
Dialogos Danzados was a dance project directed by Miroslava Wilson and Briseida López, professional choreographers from the border region. They offered free dance workshops, as well as performances for the community.
Learn more about their past residencies here.
Camino 23 Collective
Camino23 is a bilingual, bicultural, and binational theater collective. We had the pleasure of welcoming their team to our theater, where they hosted workshops, performances, and previews of their productions.
Learn more about their past production here.
Previous Events at El Salon
Living Rooms at The Border was conceptualized as a parcel-size infrastructure made of cultural and social spaces, anchoring ten diverse units of affordable housing. It is a collection of small buildings: a community theater, social, immigration and health services, and an open-air civic classroom, led and managed by Casa Familiar and residents. The interface between programmed public space and social housing is essential to assure sustainability and inclusion.
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