HELLO, I'M DOLLY bio-musical headed for the stage!

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 11:56am

Hello, I'm Dolly! I've been writing my life story as a Broadway musical for several years and I'm proud to announce we are finally developing 'Hello, I'm Dolly - An Original Musical' for the Broadway stage. Head to www.helloimdolly.com for more information.

Book by Dolly Parton and Maria S. Schlatter

Updated On: 6/6/24 at 11:56 AM

[starlightlocamotion]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:11pm

Curious to see if they go the route of having one actress or three … 

[BeingAlive44Ever]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:13pm

I bet multiple actresses are gonna play her, like a young, middle, old situation, maybe Dolly herself could narrate (wishful thinking, no way she's gonna be doing eight shows a week at this point in her career) 

I hope that Kristin Chenoweth gets to fulfill her dream of playing Dolly, she famously said she'd only do it if Dolly wrote it herself, and lookie here Dolly wrote it herself

[corninthesky]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:15pm

According to the release, it will contain some new songs too!

[SisterGeorge]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:24pm

BeingAlive44Ever said: "I bet multiple actresses are gonna play her, like a young, middle, old situation, maybe Dolly herself could narrate (wishful thinking, no way she's gonna be doing eight shows a week at this point in her career)

I hope that Kristin Chenoweth gets to fulfill her dream of playing Dolly, she famously said she'd only do it if Dolly wrote it herself, and lookie here Dolly wrote it herself"

Stormy Daniels as the Middle Dolly, please. 

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:26pm

However they do the casting, with one dolly or three, McKenzie Kurtz has got to be in this.

[BeingAlive44Ever]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 1:21pm

SisterGeorge said: "BeingAlive44Ever said: "I bet multiple actresses are gonna play her, like a young, middle, old situation, maybe Dolly herself could narrate (wishful thinking, no way she's gonna be doing eight shows a week at this point in her career)

I hope that Kristin Chenoweth gets to fulfill her dream of playing Dolly, she famously said she'd only do it if Dolly wrote it herself, and lookie here Dolly wrote it herself"

Stormy Daniels as the Middle Dolly, please."

Forgive me, but does Stormy Daniels do Broadway...? I am about 90% certain she does not. ... That would be very funny though. 

[quizking101]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 1:27pm

Call_me_jorge said: "However they do the casting, with one dolly or three, McKenzie Kurtz has got to be in this."

Yes. Or Tricia Paoluccio or Megan Hilty.

Also, what a bland title for a musical about a prolific figure 

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 1:31pm

Feels like a London run may precede the Broadway engagement, as with many of ATG’s recent offerings. 

[BeingAlive44Ever]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 3:11pm

quizking101 said: "Call_me_jorge said: "However they do the casting, with one dolly or three, McKenzie Kurtz has got to be in this."

Yes. Or Tricia Paoluccio or Megan Hilty.

Also, what a bland title for a musical about a prolific figure"

I like it just because it's her first album's name. It feels fitting. But, who knows, maybe the name will test poorly because people will think that it's literally her first album as a musical. Y'know another musical based on a famous artist's catalog with a name that doesn't make much sense? We Will Rock You. I could not tell you why it is called that. 

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 3:51pm

Carrie St. Louis played young Dolly in the workshop last year.

https://www.instagram.com/carriestlouis/p/Cy_Mu3juirB/?img_index=1

[Sammy232]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 7:50am

jacobsnchz14 said: "Carrie St. Louis played young Dolly in the workshop last year.

https://www.instagram.com/carriestlouis/p/Cy_Mu3juirB/?img_index=1"

Wasn't Kerry Butler also in this as Dolly? Is this going to be another Cher/Summer thing?

[TylerJia]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 9:35am

Surely it has to also be a play on "Hello, Dolly!" too?

[DurantPlummer41]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 10:14am

do we know who played the other dollys?

[Theatrefanboy1]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 10:20am

Of all the bio musicals I’m most excited for this. I think it has a chance to be really well done. And now that Dolly has stopped touring it’s not like there will be the competition of the real vs tribute.  Ala Cher.  
I love that she’s taken her time with this and is completely involved in its creation.  I’m hoping Kristin Chenoweth is cast. It’s really a Tony winning role imo.  I love that it’s a blend of original music and hits.  So excited.  Any idea if this would be a spring 2026 or fall? And Schubert or Nederlander? (Yes I’m already planning to attend) 

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 12:40pm

I'm excited for this as well. I'm a huge Dolly fan. With Dolly at the helm, I sense it will be quite tacky and I don't say that as a criticism. She likes crowd-pleasing things and sacrifices taste sometimes. I think this happened with 9 to 5 the Musical. It was WAY TOO MUCH. I hope she has a creative team to help her pull back a little. 

As far as Cheno, while I like her, I hope they keep her away from this property. I think she has also veered way too far into camp at this stage of her career. Queen of Versailles is Exhibit A. Why would she attach herself to a musical about that horrible and I mean horrible woman. If it tanks, she will be a liability to the Dolly show. I'd prefer an unknown who can crush the role. Also, Kristin's chirpy voice is nothing close to Dolly. Kristin is always Kristin. I never get lost in her as a character.

Hilty is the right kind of voluptuous for middle age Dolly. She was the best part of 9 to 5. 

i bet you any money there will be a great song written for Avie Lee (Dolly's mother) and Judy Ogle (Dolly's best friend and assistant). Both roles will have a shot at being very memorable and Tony contenders. 

[TheatreMonkey]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 2:56pm

While "Hello, I'm Dolly" is the first bio-musical of Dolly Parton, it's not the first Dolly Parton jukebox. There's been a musical touring around the UK that uses her catalogue and is "official" -- "Here You Come Again", with an original narrative shaped around her music (though Dolly appears as a character).

"For the first time ever, all of Dolly Parton’s biggest hits are brought together in a rollicking and joyful new musical, fully authorised by Dolly herself. Packed with iconic songs like Jolene, 9 to 5, Islands in the Stream, I Will Always Love You, Here You Come Again and more, this lively and touching new musical tells the story of a diehard fan whose imagined version of international icon Dolly Parton gets him through trying times."

Here's the BWW article about it.

Updated On: 6/7/24 at 02:56 PM

[SisterGeorge]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 4:40pm

BeingAlive44Ever said: "SisterGeorge said: "BeingAlive44Ever said: "I bet multiple actresses are gonna play her, like a young, middle, old situation, maybe Dolly herself could narrate (wishful thinking, no way she's gonna be doing eight shows a week at this point in her career)

I hope that Kristin Chenoweth gets to fulfill her dream of playing Dolly, she famously said she'd only do it if Dolly wrote it herself, and lookie here Dolly wrote it herself"

Stormy Daniels as the Middle Dolly, please."

Forgive me, but does Stormy Daniels do Broadway...? I am about 90% certain she does not. ... That would be very funny though."

She certainly has the right looks, and the reviews from her recent live appearances you-know-where were extremely positive, painting a picture of a witty, intelligent, self-assured woman who is endowed with plenty of stage presence. 

 

[pmensky]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 5:08pm

I think Tiffany Tatreau would make a great Dolly in her 20s - 30s. She has the right voice for it, she iis a wonderful actor, and it would be nice to have someone relatively unknown play her during the time she was also unknown and coming up in the business.

[SweetLips22]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 5:37pm

What a dreadful title, surely they could do better. Maybe it will just be referred to as 'Dolly' . Hello?

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 6:16pm

I'm very much tired of the 3 actresses playing the lead in these Bio shows... 

This is the stage, there is ZERO reason you can't have one actress playing the entire role. Or at WORST one actress playing young/teen Dolly and then Adult Dolly. It's a tacky ass gimmick. 

[darquegk]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 6:36pm

Jimmy Stewart played ages 15 to 40 with neither makeup nor acting changes, just different sweaters in “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

[pmensky]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 6:40pm

She’s going to he 80 when the show debuts. If the show spans her entire career, it would be a little odd to have the same actress playing her at twenty-something as well as seventy-something. That’s a big jump, even for the theatre.

[NOWaWarning]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 8:09pm

I would assume, like the Cher Show, that this won’t go that far into this century if at all. Dolly’s enjoyed “universally beloved icon” status for some time now and that doesn’t really make for a dramatically interesting story. That’s one reason I’m not really for Cheno in the role. She would have been great once, but I think she’s aged past all the juicy parts of Dolly’s story. And it’s not really worth her time to be playing the reflective narrator unless they do something interesting and innovative structurally, but I agree that that’s not really Dolly’s MO.

We know Hilty would be great, but I highly doubt she’d want to repeat herself since she already did a full-on Dolly impression in 9 to 5.

And yes, Kerry Butler did participate in a reading and posted about it on her Instagram. Of course that doesn’t mean she’s necessarily still attached.

Updated On: 6/7/24 at 08:09 PM

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 6/7/24 at 8:22pm

Carrie St. Louis also played a young version of Dolly in that workshop and posted the photo to her Instagram last year.