“I was a fan before I was his boyfriend.”
If you’re currently single and bitter about it, you may want to skip this.
Broadway boyfriends Wesley Taylor and Isaac Powell recently sat down with Theatermania to discuss their first date, but the theatrical seeds of their relationship were actually planted long before that night.
Although Powell graduated last May and Taylor graduated back in 2008, both actors attended University of North Carolina School of the Arts. They met a few years ago while Taylor was visiting the campus.
“I emailed all my teachers and texted them, and I was like, ‘You have to introduce me. I will never forgive you if you don’t introduce me to Wesley Taylor,’” Powell recalls. “I had this image, this idea of you for so long. I was crushing so hard.”
While still in high school, Powell had become a big fan of Taylor after watching the Rock of Ages alum play Bobby, an openly gay Broadway chorus boy, on NBC’s Smash.
“He loves to hear me talk about how I was a fan before I was his boyfriend,” Powell continues. “I was so obsessed. I was like, ’Who is this guy?’”
They kept in touch but really reconnected in New York last year after Powell landed the role of Daniel in Broadway’s gender-transcending Once on This Island revival and Taylor booked Sheldon J. Plankton in Broadway’s SpongeBob SquarePants musical. On their first date they attended a performance of another musical, Anastasia.
“I don’t think I’ve gone a day without seeing you since that day,” Taylor says.
“I always knew that I was going to snag you,” Powell says. “I think I, like, wished upon it on a star or something or on an eyelash many times. But I was like, ‘One day he’s going to be my boyfriend.’”
“And now I’m with child,” Taylor jokes.
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Taylor spoke to NewNowNext about his budding relationship with Powell back in December. “It’s important to celebrate these things,” he said. “We’ve only been dating for a few months, so I’m reticent to spill all the beans, but it’s no secret I’m crazy about him. Our theaters are three blocks from each other, so it’s an exciting time.”
Watch the Broadway heartthrobs recount their first meeting and date below:
