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Reeve Carney & Eva Noblezada in Hadestown

See these Broadway couples in shows together

These real-life pairs work together both on stage and behind the scenes.

Gillian Russo
Gillian Russo

Everyone loves a good showmance. From Moulin Rouge! The Musical to The Phantom of the Opera, there are plenty of shows featuring romances that blossom backstage. It's not just fiction, though — there are lots of real-life Broadway power couples who met after being cast in the same show. But even if you missed a show that brought a theatre couple together, you're in luck. Every so often, real-life spouses will return to Broadway together again.

You can see the work of real-life couples in multiple Broadway shows right now. Some play spouses on stage, while in some cases, one performs while the other works behind the scenes. We've also included couples who are on Broadway at the same time in different shows — even if you can't see them together, you can plan a two-show day and see their work back to back.

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Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada in Hadestown

If you can't help but think that Orpheus and Eurydice have such great chemistry while watching Hadestown, it might be because it's not entirely acting. Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada, who play these tragic young lovers of Greek mythology, met in rehearsals for the show and announced they were dating shortly after the show's opening in 2019. Carney and Noblezada's relationship is still going strong, and they're still starring in this musical myth retelling, so it's safe to say that their onstage romance has only grown stronger as their offstage one has.

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John Dossett and Michele Pawk in Wicked

They couldn't be happier. Broadway veterans John Dossett (Newsies, Paradise Square) and Michele Pawk (Beautiful, Hairspray) have been going strong as spouses for nearly 20 years, since 2004. And they've co-starred opposite each other multiple times since. Pawk and Dossett starred together as Donna and Sam in Mamma Mia! for a brief time in 2005, and they've also performed alongside each other in the casts of the play Democracy and the one-night benefit concert Children and Art.

The couple's latest joint Broadway venture, as of 2023, is Wicked. Pawk joined as Madame Morrible in December 2022, with Dossett joining as the Wizard in March 2023. Their onstage characters aren't romantically involved, but they still make a wickedly wonderful pair.

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Audra McDonald in Ohio State Murders and Will Swenson in A Beautiful Noise

Audra McDonald and Will Swenson, who have been married for 10 years, aren't in a show together, but they were on Broadway at the same time in fall 2022. And their two shows couldn't be more different. McDonald starred in Adrienne Kennedy's play Ohio State Murders as Suzanne Alexander, a professor who encounters racism and violence at her alma mater.

A few blocks away, Swenson currently leads A Beautiful Noise, a musical about the life and award-winning career of Neil Diamond. He plays a young Diamond as he tries to break into the industry. Maybe you'll see McDonald in the audience one day!

The two have performed together in the past, though — they met while doing 110 in the Shade on Broadway. Perhaps they'll star opposite each other again someday.

Samuel L. Jackson and LaTanya Richardson Jackson in The Piano Lesson

At The Piano Lesson on Broadway, which wrapped its run in January 2023, only one spouse appeared on stage, but the other one made the whole show happen. Samuel L. Jackson starred as Doaker Charles, the uncle to two feuding adult siblings who helps keep their family history alive. The acclaimed actor mades his grand return to Broadway after 10 years — and did so with his wife of more than 40 years by his side.

LaTanya Richardson Jackson, who's acted in shows like To Kill a Mockingbird and A Raisin in the Sun, directed The Piano Lesson. A five-star New York Theatre Guide review of The Piano Lesson says of her work, "Under the deft guidance of LaTanya Richardson Jackson, who makes her Broadway directing debut, August Wilson’s stirring story... comes vividly to life."

Stephanie J. Block and Sebastian Arcelus in Into the Woods

Just when we thought there could be no sweeter pairing than Sara Bareilles and Brian d'Arcy James (who are not spouses) in the latest revival of Into the Woods, the announcements of their replacements came along: Sebastian Arcelus and Stephanie J. Block. For a few stints during the limited-run revival, the real-life spouses played husband and wife on stage, too, as the Baker and the Baker's Wife. They are reprising their roles on the show's national tour.

The characters can't have a child thanks to a witch's curse, so they go on a quest in the woods to reverse it. Danger, stress, and a very charming prince put a strain on their marriage along the way. Luckily, in real life, Block and Arcelus have been happily married since 2007 and have a daughter together.

This wasn't the couple's first time performing together on stage. Arcelus and Block met while starring opposite each other in Wicked's Broadway and national tour productions, playing Elphaba and her beau, Fiyero.

Originally published on

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