Bunhead in "The Middle"
Bailey Buntain Dances Her Way to “The Middle!”
Actress Bailey Buntain is collecting fans by playing “Ginny” on the ABC Family hit “Bunheads.” On Wednesday, October 3, the professional dancer takes a turn as guest star on the super funny ABC show “The Middle.”
“Jenna Taylor is a new freshman at the High School that Axl and Sue go to,” Bailey explains when asked to describe her character. “She’s very nice, easy-going, makes friends easily. She doesn’t have to try super hard. She kind of like, naturally gets along with people and people like her. Since she is a freshman, she’s new and she’s getting a mentor. Sue is a sophomore now and she knows all the ways of the land. So she mentors hers. Sue, if you watch the show, you know she really struggles.”
“She is a good mentor because she tries!” Bailey says emphatically. “She puts 200% effort into everything. It’s just more like… what Sue’s maybe had problems with, Jenna really doesn’t have problems with. So it’s really funny to watch Sue give her advice and then watch Jenna take that advice and see where it goes. It’s really fun! I had a hard time not laughing while we were filming it!”
Landing a guest spot on a show that she watched made preparing for her role a little easier. “For ‘The Middle,’ I lucked out in the sense that I was a fan of the show, so I had watched it. I think anytime you start something new, or at least anytime you’re new on something, that it is an established show, you have to know the style [of the show]. When you’re a guest star, you’re in the lives of all of these characters whose lives have already been shown and keep going. So you need to know about them, and where they’re coming from and who you are interacting with. And I kind of lucked out because I had watched the show. So I didn’t need to go watch the whole season and figure out who Sue was… I knew that stuff! So that kind of helped!”
“I was not Jenna in high school,” Bailey continues about creating a new character. “I was very shy and I switched high schools a few times and I was always new. So I was not like her but I definitely knew the Jenna’s in high school. You just want to be them! They get along with everybody but they’re so nice! I knew who that girl was. The great thing about Eden is Sue is such a strong character… playing off of her and building off of her was easy because she’s so good!”
Though she was excited about being on the hit show, the performer was a little anxious about walking into a job where the cast and crew had been together for so long. “I was a little nervous about it. Everyone’s going to have their groove. I just want to make sure that I don’t step on anyone’s toes. But they were so nice. Everyone knows what they’re doing, what their job is… they’re in just the most awesome groove. They’ve got it down. They were so nice to me.”
“Most of my interaction on the show is with Sue, so most of my scenes are with Eden. She was great! It was awesome getting to talk to her and getting to know her and then also working with her. They were very, very, nice! There was a PA [Production Assistant] who worked on ‘Bunheads’ who was also working on ‘The Middle’ so it was nice to show up to set at like 5 in the morning and see a familiar face. I was actually quite sad when I wrapped. I was like ‘No!’”
Because she is very serious about her craft, Bailey welcomed the chance to gain more experience on a set other than “Bunheads.” “I think just being in a different environment and seeing how another show runs is an extremely valuable learning experience. We had different directors all the time on ‘Bunheads’ so I had started that learning process. But working with a new director and a new team, you’re exposed to more variety. You’re going to learn more.”
“This style of show is different than ‘Bunheads,’” she explains. “It’s a heightened comedy, a thirty minute. Someone like Eden’s character ‘Sue,’ she’s a very comic actress even with her body… like she’s falling. She’s always doing something on that show physical that’s hilarious. So that was really fun, to watch her do that. It was a good learning experience for me, switching gears into a different style, into a different character.”
Bailey took every advantage to learn as much as she could while she was a guest on a hit show. Even her down time was spent paying attention to her surroundings and soaking up as much as she could. “We have chairs that we can sit in and they’re by the monitors so it was nice because we could watch. Of course, when they were rolling we couldn’t talk. When we were rolling we would watch and when it wasn’t I would get to talk to everyone. I truly mean it when [I say] everyone was so welcoming and so nice. I was a fan of the show so of course, I was kind of picking people’s brains, like ‘tell me about this… tell me about that!’ I like to watch… on Bunheads and on the Middle. Anytime I’m given the opportunity when I’m not in something but I can watch it on a monitor, I really, really like that!”
We can’t wait to watch Bailey join the talented cast of “The Middle,” in an episode titled “The Second Act.” Tune into ABC on Wednesday, October 3 at 8:00PM EST (check local listings to verify time and channel).
What’s up next for Bailey? “My hiatus for ‘Bunheads’ is ending,” she says, sounding like she is ready to get back to work. “For the next few months, we will be making the next nine episodes to round out our first season.”
That’s good news for fans of the ABC Family series that are anxiously awaiting the shows return. In the meantime, show your support for Bailey by checking out her playing “Jenna” on “The Middle!”
Find out more about The Middle: ABC.com/TheMiddle
Learn more about Bailey in our “Meet The Bunheads” Feature
Follow Bailey on Twitter: twitter.com/baileybuntain