First, Ms. Gray portrayed the farmgirl Laurey to Mr. Daunno’s besotted Curly in “Oklahoma!” Then he played the mellifluous Orpheus to her intoxicating Persephone in “Hadestown.” But the shows have been in development long enough that along the way, Ms. Gray had two children; Mr. Daunno got married; and their paths to Broadway diverged.

Now “Oklahoma!” is starting performances March 19 at Circle in the Square Theater, with Mr. Daunno as Curly and Rebecca Naomi Jones as Laurey; “Hadestown” starts performances March 22 at the Walter Kerr Theater, with Ms. Gray as Persephone and Reeve Carney as Orpheus.

Mr. Daunno, a 34-year-old from New Jersey, and Ms. Gray, a 37-year-old who grew up in a roving military family, spoke in separate interviews about their intersecting journeys through parallel shows.

I gather neither of you ever expected to be in “Oklahoma!”

DAUNNO I had seen it when I was like 8, and I thought, “I’m not really into Oklahoma!” And I thought there’s no way any production of “Oklahoma!” is ever going to cast me as Curly. But they came back and said, ‘Trust me, this is not your grandmother’s “Oklahoma!,” and then I Googled some bits of the movie and Hugh Jackman, and cobbled together a video of me playing “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin.” I wasn’t going to try to please them, but just do it the way I do it, and it turned out that’s what Daniel Fish was looking for.