Dolly Parton on Turning Her Life Into a Musical: ‘It Was a Good Story to Tell’

Dolly Parton celebrated the premiere of Dolly: A True Original Musical in Nashville on Friday (Aug. 8) with a star-studded red carpet event and a surprise appearance on stage following the show’s finale.

The musical tells the story of Parton’s life, from a young girl in the Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee to becoming one of the world’s biggest stars. The show features some of Parton’s biggest hits, like “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors,” and “9 to 5, “ as well as new songs she wrote specifically for the musical. 

Ahead of the premiere at the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of Belmont University, Parton spoke with Country Now about her decision to bring her life story to the stage. 

“I just thought it was a good story to tell and I wanted to tell it while I was still living, and I could get it out there the way that I wanted it done. And so I thought it was a good story,” she explained. “And since I write songs, I thought, well, I could write a lot of music for a show rather than just having it done as a movie, which we may still do that later, but I thought it would make a good Broadway show.”

Dolly: A True Original Musical features a terrific cast, including Katie Rose Clarke as ‘Dolly Parton,’ Carrie St. Louis as ‘Dolly,’ and young Quinn Titcomb as ‘Little Dolly.’ 

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Clarke tells us she grew up listening to Dolly Parton and says that landing this role was “an honor of a lifetime.” 

When it came to preparing to portray an icon like Parton, she says it felt as though her whole life had been leading up to this role.

“It was sort of just a lifelong preparation and my best friend growing up is from the Smoky Mountains, so I even kind of knew that region and the dialect. And so it was sort of like everything in my life had prepared me for this unknowingly,” she shared. “I mean, I think God just used everything in my life leading up to now to sort of be able to equip me to do this.” 

St. Louis deemed this moment a “dream come true” and revealed she has spent “lots and lots of hours” preparing to step into Parton’s shoes. 

“I’ve been in guitar lessons, yodeling lessons, vocal coachings, accent coachings. I just knew that if I got this opportunity, I wanted to do everything and anything to make it the best because she deserves the best and I just want to do her justice and have even just a pinky toe of her charisma and talent,” she said. “So a lot of hours of preparation, but also listening to Dolly Parton all day and trying to be more like Dolly Parton. You can’t lose.” 

Directed by Tony Award winner Bartlett Sher, and choreography by Emmy Award winner Mandy Moore, the musical also features John Zdorjeski as ‘Porter Wagoner,’ GRAMMY and Outer Critics Circle Award nominee John Behlmann as ‘Carl Dean,’ Jacob Fishel as ‘Sandy Gallin,’ Tabitha Lawing as ‘Little Judy Ogle,’ Tony Award nominee Beth Malone as ‘Judy Ogle,’ and Danny Wolohan as ‘Uncle Bill.

The musical is produced by Parton, Danny Nozell, ATG Productions, and Gavin Kalin Productions, and is expected to make its Broadway debut in 2026. 

Fans can catch Dolly: A True Original Musical in Nashville through August 31, 2025.