While the rest of the world follows the ups and downs of “Brangelina” and “Kimye,” we can’t get enough of these dance stars’ real-life love stories. Luckily, Valentine’s Day gives us an excuse to talk about them (while eating tons of chocolate). We’ve rounded up DT‘s five favorite dance-world couples of the moment.
#5. Tiler Peck and Robert Fairchild
These New York City Ballet principals’ chemistry is electric. Just look at their fierce freestyle partnering at the Vail International Dance Festival:
#4. Tabitha and Napoleon D’umo
We have to congratulate this husband-and-wife power couple on their new baby, London Riley! The D’umo duo graced the cover of DT in 2008 and has choreographed for So You Think You Can Dance and five seasons of America’s Best Dance Crew. They even found time to create their own dancewear and clothing line, Nappytabs! Now they’re taking on parenthood with the same enthusiasm they bring to the dance floor.
Tabitha and Napoleon D’umo welcomed their son, London Riley, on August 10, 2012.
#3. Olivier Wevers and Lucien Postlewaite
These former Pacific Northwest Ballet principals met when Lucien joined the company in 2003. They got married five years later. Olivier credits his partner for motivating him to take the plunge and leave PNB to start his own company, Whim W’Him, in 2011. “Lucien…pushed me for a year to do it,” he told Dance Magazine. “He understands the vision.” Lucien has performed with Whim W’Him and currently dances with Les Ballets de Monte Carlo.
Olivier Wevers (in white shirt) and Lucien Postlewaite in Whim W’Him rehearsal
#2. Stephen “tWitch” Boss and Allison Holker
They met on So You Think You Can Dance Season 2, but the romance didn’t heat up until the end of Season 7. At that point, Allison tells Dance Spirit, she not only made the first move, but closer to ten moves before tWitch caught on! (Read the full Q&A here.) Good thing tWitch got the message, since clearly this love is meant to be: The couple announced their engagement in January.
Allison Holker and Stephen “tWitch” Boss in their Dance Spirit August 2012 cover shoot
#1. Ethan Stiefel and Gillian Murphy
These two are the original ballet love birds. We swoon over their classic “he was a principal, she was a young corps member” fairytale match-up that happened nearly 15 years ago at American Ballet Theatre. Now the pair is based in New Zealand, where Ethan directs the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Before they departed, however, Gillian got an onstage surprise proposal at the Metropolitan Opera House last spring. Ethan recalls the moment to The New York Times: “She said, ‘We have to get off the stage.’ I just went, ‘Gillian, refocus.’ And she said, ‘I do, I do!'” How adorable is that? We wish them all the best!
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Photos: via FOX.com, by Kim and Adam Bamberg, Courtesy Whim W’Him, by Joe Toreno, by Rosalie O’Conner, by James Whitehill/The New York Times