Dolly Parton Handpicked The Stars Of Her Broadway Musical – See The 1st Cast Photos
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Before her death on August 25, Dolly Parton selected the stars she wanted to play the five main roles in her autobiographical Broadway musical, DOLLY: A True Original Musical. The names of those stars have now been revealed.
On Friday (October 2), the musical’s producers were delighted to announce that Katie Rose Clarke, Carrie St. Louis, Norah Nunes, John Behlmann, and Gabriel Ebert are the performers Parton “handpicked” for the production.
- Katie Rose Clarke will play Dolly Parton in the musical. She starred in the same role during the show’s previous run in Nashville. Clarke has an extensive resume and is known for her performances in The Light in the Piazza, Allegiance, Miss Saigon, and Merrily We Roll Along.
- Carrie St. Louis will play a younger Dolly during her early days in Nashville. She also played the same role in the musical’s Nashville production. She’s known for her prior performances in Wicked, Just In Time, Rock of Ages, and Kinky Boots.
- 11-year-old Norah Nunes will make her Broadway debut as “Little Dolly.” Nunes was one of the finalists in the “Search for Dolly” casting call. She previously starred as Young Anna in Frozen‘s North American tour.
- John Behlmann will portray Parton’s beloved husband, Carl Dean, to whom she was married for nearly 60 years before his death in 2025. Behlmann also played Carl Dean during the production’s run in Nashville. He’s a Grammy-nominated performer known for his roles in The Great Gatsby, Smash, Shucked, and Tootsie.
- Gabriel Ebert will play Parton’s mentor and fellow country star, Porter Wagoner. He is known for his Tony Award-winning performance as Mr. Wormwood in Matilda the Musical. He’s also starred in Pass Over, Casa Valentina, Thérèse Raquin, and Brief Encounter.
Speaking on behalf of the musical’s producers, Adam Speers of ATG Productions issued the following statement about the cast in a press release:
“[Parton] was passionate about every aspect of our production, but never more than when choosing the actors who would bring her story, and the people closest to her, to life on Broadway. In Katie Rose Clarke, she found an actress who captures not only Dolly’s journey but her voice, her wit, her courage, and the great big heart that carried her through it all.”
Speers continued, saying that Parton felt assured that all five of the show’s main cast members “could tell the hopeful, deeply human story of what it means to be a true original.”
Look below to see the first photos released of the cast from DOLLY: A True Original Musical.
When Does The Dolly Parton Musical Premiere On Broadway?
DOLLY: A True Original Musical premiered in Nashville last summer. The show traces her life story from her childhood in the Smoky Mountains to her rise as a worldwide phenomenon. It features fan-favorite songs such as “I Will Always Love You” and “Coat of Many Colors,” as well as some brand-new tunes Parton wrote with the production in mind.
The musical will begin hosting its preview performances at New York’s St. James Theatre on Monday, December 7. The official opening night will be January 19, 2027, which would have been Parton’s 81st birthday.
Tickets can be purchased online at dollymusical.com. The initial on-sale lasts through November 21, 2027.
The show’s producers have partnered with the New York City Department of Education to provide 30,000 free tickets to middle school and high school students in New York City. A press release about the production says the hope for this partnership is to:
“…open the doors of Broadway to the next generation of theater makers and theatergoers, spark unforgettable memories, and strengthen family bonds.”
Based on what we’ve seen of the cast so far, they seem determined to deliver an unforgettable production that would have made Dolly Parton proud. You can hear more from the show’s five main stars in the video below, which shows them uniting for the first time.
