
About the Show

The Closet B.I.T.C.H. is a one-woman show about a father who shows to up to his daughter’s housewarming and never leaves. Pretending to be okay with her father bulldozing past her boundaries makes Shana, an aspiring actress and writer, realize he’s not the only one in her life who needs to hear the word ‘no.’ Will she rewrite her story, or continue to play along until the show gets cancelled. This dark-comedy is loosely based on true events.

They're doing too much! She played herself.
the Creators

The Writer. The Executive Producer. The Actress.

Shana Solomon, is a writer, producer, author and an award winning character actor known for her TV roles on “Law & Order SVU”, HBO’s “Divorce”, Also HBO’s, “The Deuce”, NBC’s “New Amsterdam” and her recurring role as Karen on NBC’s “Shades Of Blue” Starring Jennifer Lopez and Ray Liotta. Shana’s newest TV role will be on STARZ’ hit drama, “POWER” & BET’s “First Wives Club” with Jill Scott.
Solomon has also starred in films that were big hits at the 2017 Sundance film Festival, “The Big Sick”, a comedy starring Ray Romano and Kumail Nanjiani and “Crown Heights” with Keith Stanfield.
Recently Solomon’s one-woman web series won 3 awards at the New York City Hip Hop Film Festival including best actress and best web series for, “The Closet B.I.T.C.H”, a dark comedy where Shanaplays 8 characters about a woman who falls apart while trying to make everyone else happy. Shana co-wrote and co-produced the series The Closet B.I.T.C.H which was adapted from the one-woman stage play (with the same title) she created starred in and wrote where Solomon performs 19 characters.
“We we’re doing shows of The Closet BITCH every week and it was growing quickly but the theaters were so expensive to rent and we didn’t have the capital to cover the costs so I decided to create more of a buzz by creating content to watch on Instagram specifically to build an even larger audience to pre-sell enough tickets which would cover the necessary costs needed to build a limited theater run of a few months. But that idea of doing a few sketch videos for social media turned into an entire series. We’re now in Post production of season 2. You never know where the road of persistence and passion may take you.”
The Closet B.I.T.C.H series can currently be seen on Black Oak TV a streaming service, app and YouTube page. https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZC_MjESBiBMoqxxkgoc6GW6f6KlkwpLt

William Alexander Runnels
The Writer. The Executive Producer. The Director.
Director’s Statement
When I sign my name, I use my initials “WAR”. People are usually intrigued. Some find it dope. Others find it off-putting.
That’s how I feel about the projects I’m drawn to direct. Unexpected as they unfold and at their core, like me, concerned with identity.
In The Closet B.I.T.C.H., Shana purchases a brand new Co-Op and her father crashes the house-warming party and stays for 20 years. On top of that, she is surrounded by people she seems to have outgrown. Will she ever blossom into the fearless woman she wants to be? Not until the little girl looks herself in the mirror and decides to wage war with the people holding her back.
William Alexander Runnels is originally from Dallas, Texas and graduated from the prestigious Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing & Visual Arts. He obtained a B.F.A. in Acting from CW Post/Long Island University in 2009 and received a full scholarship to attend New York Stage & Film's Powerhouse Theater at Vassar College as an acting apprentice. Directing: Black Actress Season II(2015 & 2016 Official Selection at the American Black Film Festival), Beyond Complicated, Working Out the Kinks, Film Lab Presents...(NYC Life 25) and he was the Co-Creator of the award-winning web series Young N’ Reckless. Theatre Directing: Church at Lehman College's school of Theatre and Dance & Somnets for an Old Century at C. W. Post. WAR was a member of the 2017 Lincoln Center Director's Lab. The Closet B.I.T.C.H. won 3 awards at the 2019 Hip-Hop Film Festival and was an Official Selection at the 2020 Harlem International Film Festival & New York Indie Theater Festival. He is a reader for the Leah Ryan’s Fund for Emerging Women Writers and he currently is working in NYC as a freelance Director of Photography, working frequently with The Daily Beast’s Half Full, The Lip Bar, African Chop House, Boxers and Team Enterprises.


Meet The Team

Festivals & Awards Season 1






