Dolly Parton is Back!

After a season of rest, Dolly Parton steps back into the spotlight as Dollywood opens for its 41st season

The walk might have been a little slower than in years past. Certainly, the steadying hand of Dollywood Parks and Resorts President Eugene Naughton might have been a little bit firmer. But when the spotlight came on, and the crowd started cheering, it was the same old Dolly on the stage, feisty, funny, and irreverent. 

Parton returned to the public eye as Dollywood kicked off its new season, and the Dreamer in Chief had a message she wanted to deliver. And deliver she did, addressing rumors about her personal life and her health. She spoke poignantly and then humorously about her grief in the wake of losing her husband of 59 years, Carl Dean, last year. And finally, she offered updates on the park and work she’s been doing while on hiatus. 

Where had Dolly been?

In the fall of 2025, Parton missed an event she had been scheduled to appear to promote Dollywood’s newest attraction – NightFlight Expedition, which opens later this year. She then followed up by postponing a Las Vegas residency over health issues.

Then came a post on the social media site X – formerly known as Twitter – by her sister Stella asking for prayers. And that set off panicked speculation that forced Dolly’s team to issue a statement revealing she was battling a kidney stone-related infection and general exhaustion. Once everything appeared to be OK, the tabloids took to speculation about her love life and more. 

Did Dolly address the rumors?

She did in a way that only she can. She was funny, but there was an edge to it. You could tell they’d crossed some lines, and she wanted to set some records straight. 

She started by talking to Naughton. She said that since he’d escorted her to the stage – and the chairs on them – so diligently, there were probably some people in the audience, which did contain members of the media, who thought he was her new husband. The one that they’d read about in the Enquirer or “one of those rags.” 

“I know there are a lot of rumors going around. But I did not marry Sylvester Stallone,” she said. “Did you see that one? And I’m not dating anybody. I’m not married.” 

The audience gave a soft “aww” and she paused a second, a quiver in her voice.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be married but once,” she said before recovering with some of her trademark humor. “I think Carl Dean is waiting for me on the other side and, if I should show up at the Pearly Gates with somebody else, he would not like that. He’d be saying, ‘Who’s that little pisser?’ catching Naughton off guard. “Leave him outside the gates, and if the Lord wants him in, he’ll bring him. You get on in here with me.’ You know he’d say that, right?”

After mentioning she had not been touring, she explained why she’d been on a respite.

“I’ve had a few little health issues, and we’re taking good care of them. I just got kinda worn down and worn out, grieving over Carl and a lot of other little things going on, and I just kind of got myself, just where I needed to build myself back up spiritually, emotionally, physically, but all is good, it didn’t slow me down.”

How did Dolly seem?

At times, she seemed like an 80-year-old woman coming off a health issue. Naughton was especially attentive as the two walked on and off stage – Dolly still wearing 5-inch heels. The two chairs onstage were also apparently a concession so she wouldn’t have to stand the whole time. But the selection of especially tall chairs she had to climb onto seemed a little odd.

I don’t think she was thrilled with the chairs, which, I assume, her team insisted on more than she did. She made a couple of references to feeling bad about sitting onstage. 

Her voice quivered a couple of times – but mostly as she talked about Carl Dean. Otherwise, she seemed pretty much herself, cracking jokes and straying swiftly and consistently away from the teleprompter projected on the back wall.

I have been lucky to have attended several opening-day kickoff events, and she was certainly frailer than she was a decade ago, but also very much herself. Very much in control and command, and still just as funny as she ever was. 

What has Dolly been up to while ‘resting’?

Even in her 80’s, resting for Dolly means something different than for many of us. She mentioned writing new songs and updating others for her “9 to 5: The Musical,” which is appearing on Broadway. And she talked about her new Nashville resort and museum, which is set to open relatively soon. But she didn’t mention Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Shop, set to open this year and challenge Buc-ee’s for Interstate pit stop supremacy.

Park expansions and NightFlight Expedition

She and Naughton discussed NightFlight Expedition and other happenings at the park, and she took time to answer a handful of pre-selected questions from the crowd. All in all, it was a successful return to the public eye for a woman who’s been famous for somewhere around 60 years or more. 

But if there was one thing she wanted the crowd – and the world – to take away from the appearance it was that the rest period was only temporary.

“Be ready,” she said. “I ain’t done.”

Are you as relieved as we are to see Dolly return? Let us know what you think in the comments and on the socials!