Eden Riegel recently returned to ABC’s All My Children to reprise her role as Pine Valley’s beloved lesbian sweetheart Bianca, whom she first played in 2000, when Bianca was a teenager coming to terms with her sexuality. Eight years later, Riegel’s character is now a mother of two and newly engaged to Reese (Tamara Braun), an architect she met in France.
During her time away from the daytime drama, Riegel and her husband Andrew Miller launched a web series called Imaginary Bitches, in which Riegel plays a single (straight) woman with high-maintenance imaginary friends (tagline: “Life’s a bitch. Then you invent one”).
Immediately after the election results on Nov. 4, Riegel created and starred in an anti-Prop. 8 PSA (with her Imaginary Bitches co-stars), and donated a portion of her DVD sales to fight for gay marriage.
We chatted with Eden via email this week about improvements in lesbian visibility on daytime TV, gay marriage, and discovering her inner bitch.
AfterEllen.com: How does it feel to be back on All My Children? Any chance you’ll extend your contract and stay longer? Eden Riegel: It’s amazing to be back. It’s like going home (if home was a really cold studio filled with really gorgeous people). But the best part is working with Tamara Braun. She’s a fantastic person and an amazing actress.
As far as extending goes, I don’t know. My immediate goal is to execute the current story as well as we possibly can, but if they have a way of extending this story into something equally exciting, who knows?
AE: What do you think the writers have in store for Reese and Bianca? What would you like to see happen with them, if you were writing the storyline? ER: When they asked me to come back, it was to explore Bianca and Reese’s relationship as they moved toward a wedding. Which is why I was so excited to return.
In terms of the future, what I want is for us to really dig in deep to the issues that come up for same sex couples as they make the adjustment to from love’s first blush to becoming a family. Bianca and Reese have had a head start with Bianca’s beautiful daughter Miranda, but bringing another child into the picture brings it’s own set of complications. Especially when it’s the biological daughter of only one of them. I love the idea of exploring what family really means and what’s great about daytime television is that you get to see the relationships and dynamics shift and grow over a longer period of time than you can in other, quicker mediums.
AE: The first sex scene between Bianca and Reese just aired and it was one of the sexier ones your character – or any lesbian character – has done on daytime TV. Did you and Tamara talk about how to approach it ahead of time? Are you happy with how it turned out? ER: We work so well together and are so comfortable with one another, we just went into those scenes like we would any others. I haven’t seen the final product yet, but I’m extremely happy with the reaction they’ve gotten from the fans! We thought it was pretty hot, too.
AE: Your character seems to be allowed to be more physically affectionate with Reese than she was with previous girlfriends. Do you think this is a sign of progress, and that there is more acceptance by the American public – or at least those who watch daytime television – of same sex couples on TV? ER: Absolutely! There was a time not so long ago that Bianca and Maggie could barely greet each other with a kiss on the cheek, now Bianca and Reese are actually in bed together. I love it!
Bianca and Reese’s sex scene 11/14/08
In my experience, soap fans have always been extremely accepting of Bianca’s journey because daytime fans really care about their characters.If you’re a fan of the show and you like Bianca, you want her to be happy and the scenes we’ve done are an expression of that happiness. It’s always easier to accept a different lifestyle when you know and care about the person (or character).
AE: How do you reconcile the improved lesbian visibility on All My Children with the passage of Prop 8, and other anti-gay rights measures that were approved in the last election? ER: It’s so hard. We still have such a long way to go. Maybe we need to get more people to watch daytime television! I think the Yes on Prop 8 people did a very good job confusing and misrepresenting the issue. Fear is always an effective way to keep people from embracing change.
AE: What inspired you make the Imaginary Bitches Prop 8 PSA? How has it been received? ER: My husband and I were so crushed when the proposition was passed and wanted to do whatever we could to help prevent the issue from getting lost. The constitution is meant to protect equal rights, not deny certain citizens those rights. And because our fans are spread out across the country, it was important to us to make sure they were aware of what was going on in California and elsewhere in similar measures. The national election was such an exciting one, it felt like the state initiatives didn’t get much national attention.
The best way Andrew is able to express himself is through those bitches, Catherine and Heather, so we decided to make a comedic version of the PSA’s that Leonardo DiCaprio and all his fancy friends did to help bring out the vote to spread the word about Prop 8. Donating 88 cents from the sale of each Imaginary Bitches DVD was a way to put our money where our collective mouths were. So far we’ve been thrilled with the reaction. Our fans have been incredibly supportive (because our fans are awesome) and the back and forth discussion/argument in the comment section of our YouTube page has been extremely enlightening.
You don’t expect to see much social discourse on YouTube, but this is a topic that people feel very passionate about and I’m really glad that the conversation is continuing. It’s the only way for people to understand what’s at stake. Freedom and equality is what makes our country great.
AE: Imaginary Bitches has been a big hit online, especially with women. What did you enjoy most about making it? ER:Working with Andrew. Working with our friends. Doing comedy. I think it’s such an exciting and inventive idea for a show and the group of people we were able to put together to pull it off is like a dream team.
Dating is such a pain in the ass and I can totally relate to that feeling when all your friends are “coupled-up” and you just feel so alone. And weird! I love how Eden (the character) turns to her inner bitches for help.
I’ve only gotten to know my own inner bitch in the last few years and I really like it. Being in touch with that side of you is really empowering – whether you’re single or not.
AE: What have been the most surprising and interesting lessons you’ve learned from developing and starring in a web series? ER:I’m constantly amazed how incredible the fans have been in supporting the show and spreading it around. When people find something they like and get behind it, the results can be amazing.
We made it for fun and don’t have the backing of a studio, or any kind of marketing budget, so it’s really just been the fans who have made the show as successful as it is. It’s like being Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland and putting up a show in a really, really big, technologically sophisticated barn. It’s so cool that it’s possible.
AE: Any plans for any more of your imaginary friends to come out next season? (Will there be a next season?) ER: We sure hope there will be a next season! Andrew’s trying to figure that out right now. And you’d have to ask him about what his plans are for the bitches.
At the end of the first season, “Jennifer” popped out of Eden’s imagination when she was questioning her own sexuality and Jen turned out to be gay (which Eden discovered one night in the bathtub). I don’t know what Andrew has planned for Jen. Or the other girls.AE: What are you looking forward to most about the RockTheSoap cruise? ER: I love working with Bob Guiney – he makes every experience fun. And I’m really looking forward to getting a chance to sing with his awesome band. And my BAM and Imaginary Bitches partner Elizabeth Hendrickson is going too. So is Greg Rikaart from Imaginary Bitches and Young & the Restless.
We’re going to eat, drink, hang out with the fans, sign some Imaginary Bitches DVD’s and raise some money to overturn Prop 8! All in bikinis! It’s going to be a lot of fun.
AE: You co-host a show with your (straight) friend Bob called Cooking to Get Lucky! What would you advise a cooking-challenged woman to make if she wanted to impress another woman on a date? ER:Yep, Bob is straight. What gave it away? His wardrobe? Just kidding! I’d advise a cooking-challenged woman to watch Cooking to Get Lucky! Speaking as a woman, what I really appreciate is someone who pays attention. If you’ve gone on a couple dates with someone, you should have a sense of what they like and don’t like.
If I’m coming over for dinner and you show me that you’ve been listening, I’m going to be impressed. Even if you’re not the greatest cook. That’s what we try to do on the show.
Make a night that’s going to make your date feel special. That’s the key ingredient. And booze!
Watch Eden’s Prop. 8 PSA and buy Imaginary Bitches on DVD at ImaginaryBitches.com, and watch Eden on Brunch With Bridget and Cat on the Prowl.
