Theater

Actoberfest, Secret Rose Theatre 2006

• Justina directed her fiance's short one act "Exploding Girlfriends." There were baked beans and barbie dolls. Need I say more?

Thicker Than Water, Actors' Circle 2005

• LA Weekly says "Justina Walford directs." And they are correct. I did. It also got a recommend, which rocks. Michael Rex is a great writer and actor and I hope he becomes famous so he can buy me lunch.

15 Minutes of FEM, Egyptian Arena Theatre 2005

• I didn't win this little contest, but I made some incredible friends from the experience and got some sweetheart who called herself a "fan" to talk to me after the show.

Overflow, Hudson Guild Theatre 2005

• Split Id wore out the reviewers by 2005, but many die hards call this autobiographical piece their favorite Walford play. Review Plays called the women of the show "haunting." That's because the cast was six hot hapas talking about being, well, hapas. I was one of them. So I just called myself hot. That's right. I'm hot.

Stranger Than Fiction, Split.Id Theatre 2005

• This is the show I want to do forever and ever. It's This American Life meets indie theater. Writers get on stage and talk about something that really happened to them. Or they lie.

Breaking Up, Split.Id Theatre 2005

• Split.Id is saying farewell to the Complex with a bang. Their last show at the Split.Id Theatre is two
  hilarious one acts –“Morning Coffee” by Frederick Stroppel and “Gendermat” by Mark Dunn- directed by award winning Justina Walford. The first one act, “Morning Coffee,” is a biting look at breaking up
  with New York live-in couple, Katie and David. Their relationship thrives on their many melees, but this Saturday morning, things will change. From cheap jabs to true pain, this break up shows how an everyday fight can turn into last words. The second one act, “Gendermat,” cleverly shows the different genders
  and their universal way of breaking up. Set in an apartment basement laundry room, a couple says their farewell. The one act is a sort of tag team theater where a character’s gender changes with the actors. -ReviewPlays.com
  

Evolution of Sunday, Hudson Guild Theatre 2003, 2004

• Written and performed twice, this drama about grief and loss received rave reviews. Backstage West called the '04 production "compelling" and the actors "superb" while in '03 NoHo>LA raved that the production "makes you ponder about where you are spiritually." But the best kudos was from LA Weekly who on both productions called the play "well written" and "intelligent."
• Full review from LA Weekly: "Writer Justina Walford has delivered a thoughtful and affecting drama about faith, love and forgiveness, remarkable for both the clarity of its focus and the complexity of its characters. Director Marisa O’Brien gets subtle yet powerful performances from her cast of two, and tries a novel device for scene transitions: Segue music is sung live from behind the audience up in the booth area, and singer Annie Katsura Rollins adds nicely to the changing moods with her lovely voice. The story begins as a stunned and bleeding man, Kevin (Braden Tenney), staggers into the office of pastor Danielle (Zanne Walls). At first he seems antagonistic and crazy, until it is revealed that he’s just been in a car accident where his wife was killed. Kevin’s late wife had made him promise to spend four Sundays at this church, and now he angrily appeals to Danielle for comfort and guidance. Danielle has a secret, however, which will turn this relationship inside out. Tenney does a terrific job with a tricky role. Kevin isn’t such a great guy: He took his wife for granted, he’s rudely confrontational, but beneath that surface he’s collapsing completely, and Tenney balances the anger and sorrow very well. Walls excels with the more internalized Danielle, and when her secret is revealed, Walls displays her helpless grief and shame in a sudden torrent of emotion that is startlingly deep and moving."

Memoirs of an Almost Geisha, Split.Id Theatre 2003, 2004

• I created this with writer/actor Penney Wei. It's a monologue and sketch collection focused on the female Asian-American experience. Kristina Wong was a highlight of that particular adventure. She's funny.

Dating in Person, Split.Id Theatre 2003, 2004

• "With a nod to Howard Korder’s Boy’s Life, Justina Walford’s well-written comedy follows three friends as they navigate through the thickets of love and romance...The action unfolds in a series of simple, short scenes, where this trio of gal pals meets and matches up with different fellows, wrestles with temptations, and ultimately finds salvation in the arms of their true loves or in independence. The cast is flawless." -LA Weekly