Dolly Parton was 80, and she didn’t want to go quietly.
In an interview with People magazine, the singer said that she and her team had been talking with companies specializing in creating ‘avatar performances’: virtual versions of herself that could take the stage when her body could no longer do so. The idea came up after a difficult year. In May, she permanently canceled her six-concert Las Vegas residency because of medication-induced dizziness, and on August 14 she had to miss the opening of an attraction at Dollywood, Tennessee, sending a video recorded at her home in Nashville in her place.
Even so, Dolly didn’t stop. She virtually accepted the Poet’s Award at the ACM Honors and was already preparing for the premiere of her musical ‘DOLLY: A True Original Musical’ on Broadway, scheduled for January 19, 2027, the very day of her 81st birthday. The avatar project is still in its early stages, but it leaves one thing clear: for her, music has no expiration date.
