Jillian Bach

At age 26, actress Jillian Bach has amassed a resume of acting credits. The 5-foot tall Florida native can currently be seen as Irene on the ABC sitcom "Two Guys and a Girl" at 9 p.m. every Friday. In addition, she has guest-starred in episodes of "Party of Five," "Felicity" and "The X-Files." Before joining the cast of "Two Guys and a Girl," Bach made her film debut with a small part in "American Pie." The Brown University alumna speaks about life on the "Two Guys and a Girl" set, her aspirations, working with David Duchovny and why she loves television.\nIDS: Describe the typical day on a TV sitcom set.\nBach: We work a Wednesday to Tuesday week. The script is delivered to our homes, and we memorize our lines before we go in. On Wednesdays, we do a read-through of the script, so we come in around 11 in the morning, and by 11:30 we're done. Thursdays we rehearse, and we usually work from 9 to 2:30 with a half-hour lunch break. At 2:30 we have a run-through for the producers, which, on a sitcom, are also the writers. The challenging thing is that we go home after doing the run-through and the writers stay there working, so sometimes I get script changes delivered to me at midnight. It's constantly shifting. We rehearse Thursday and Friday. On Monday, the cameras come in, and there are 50 more people observing us than there were earlier in the week. On that day, we block the scenes, which means we mark where we stand. On Tuesday, we come in at 12 and continue rehearsing, and we start filming the show at 7 at night. We end at 11. We film in front of a live audience, and I was a theater actor before I got into television, so I like that. The director doesn't have a lot of power, which is the most fascinating thing to me. At the end of the day, the director only yells, "Action!" If they're good and well-respected, they have more power. Right now I'm working with Michael Lembeck, who has directed a lot of "Friends" episodes, and he's been nominated for a lot of awards.\nIDS: What are your long-term career goals?\nBach: I think, being an actor, it's just a relief every time you get a part. Long-term is so dangerous for me personally. I'm very happy doing TV. When and if I have a family, the hours are perfect, but my roots are in theater. So the dream of my life would be to be back in New York City doing theater and doing movies in my spare time. I don't necessarily think that's the way it's going to go, though, because TV is so seductive with a great workday. You're going to work and making people laugh, and that's fantastic.\nIDS: Have you met many big name stars? \nBach: I wish I was cooler. I don't court fame; I'm too shy. Right now, I've become good friends with Tiffani-Amber Thiessen because she's now on "Two Guys and a Girl." Otherwise, call me in five years. Then we'll see who I'm hanging out with. \nIDS: Do you enjoy working with the other cast members? \nBach: Yes. We make a really good family. We all want the show to be successful because the viewership is not that high, unfortunately. We're just there to have fun with each other. I'm so lucky. But it's a tenuous time for the show. "Friends" knows it's coming back next season, but we don't know if we are. It's just odd being in this limbo. And there is also a writer/actor strike expected to happen in June. We don't know when or if it will happen.\nIDS: Do you know what the series writers have planned for your character? \nBach: They don't tell me. They enjoy not telling me, in fact. My character is the quirkiest one. They liken it to Kramer from "Seinfeld." Literally, I could be dancing on a bookcase, and then the next week I could be a librarian. The gamut is huge.\nIDS: Are you as neurotic as your character, Irene? \nBach: No. I relate to her kindness. She's the most giving, lovely creature, and she wears her heart on her sleeve. I'm much more guarded than she is. I wouldn't call her neurotic because she's too naïve. She's an innocent; I don't think she realizes what a kook she is. She thinks she's absolutely the norm, and it's very fun to play someone who knows no better. Irene is never mean, so her humor is in her freakish nature as opposed to putting down someone else, and I love that. \nIDS: What was it like to work with Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny when you guest starred on "The X-Files?"\nBach: I didn't have scenes with Gillian. David Duchovny is a dream; a dreamboat and a dream. He was so kind. I had a huge weeping scene with him and after eight hours of shooting it, the tears just dried up and I was scared to death that I'd be fired. He took my mind off of it; he went to Princeton, so we started comparing Ivy League schools. He got me back to where I should be, and he held my hand after we were done shooting and told me I did great. He's so good at what he does. \nIDS: What is your advice to students who want to become actors? \nBach: My personal advice is to go to school first and get a liberal arts education, and then if you want to pursue acting, go to graduate school.