Dolly Parton’s handpicked cast revealed for new Broadway musical

Dolly Parton personally chose the five leading actors for DOLLY: A True Original Musical.

Dolly Parton’s handpicked cast for DOLLY: A True Original Musical has been revealed.

The country music icon died on August 25 aged 80, but before she passed away, the 9 to 5 legend personally chose the five leading actors to tell her life story.

As revealed by PEOPLE magazine, Katie Rose Clarke, Carrie St. Louis and Norah Nunes have been cast as Dolly in three different stages of her life.

Gabriel Ebert and John Belhmann were also handpicked by the star to play early collaborator Porter Wagoner and her beloved late husband Carl Dean.

Preview performances for the production are due to start at St. James Theatre in New York City on December, with the opening night following on what would have been her 81st birthday, January 19.

Director Bartlett Sher is delighted to see Katie cast as Dolly over two decades after first working with her for her Broadway debut in 2005’s A Light In The Piazza.

He said: “As ‘Clara,’ she showed incredible talent.

“Twenty years later, I got to see that early promise fully realised as a true leading lady when, as our run in Nashville was concluding, Dolly asked her to play the role on Broadway.”

She has since played Glinda in Wicked, as well as starring in the likes of Miss Saigon and Merrily We Roll Along.

Carrie previously played Dolly already in the musical’s July 2025 production in Nashville, while also appearing in Wicked, Rock of Ages, Kinky Boots and more.

Norah, 11, is making her Broadway debut as Dolly during her childhood after becoming a finalist in the production’s Search For Dolly open casting call.

Katie and her castmates now have the challenge of keeping Dolly’s memory and life story going in a profound way.

Bertlett added: “Katie, Carrie, and Norah don’t just play the Dolly we all know; they show us the real woman behind the glamour.

“Alongside John and Gabriel, these five actors are tackling roles that will become part of American mythology.

“Behind these modern-day legends is a very human story of three people who loved, fought, made up, and helped shape Dolly into the woman the world adores.”

Meanwhile, the production will honour Dolly’s own commitments by partnering with NYC’s Department of Education with 30,000 free tickets available to public middle and high school students during its first year on Broadway.

The Jolene hitmaker wrote new songs for the musical to sit alongside classics from her back catalogue.

Her manager Danny Nozell recently revealed her team have a “project roadmap” from Dolly herself, which will keep her legacy alive “for decades to come”.

He said in a statement: “Dolly worked up until the day she died. She loved seeing her dreams come to life, and loved knowing her work brought people joy.

“Ever the planner, Dolly worked with the team that she handpicked, for the past several years to build a project roadmap that will guide us for decades to come.”