At 80, Dolly Parton isn’t slowing down—she’s pivoting. Just days after celebrating her milestone birthday on January 19, Parton announced Threads: My Songs in Symphony, a bold multimedia residency with the Nashville Symphony that reimagines six decades of her songs through the grandeur of a full orchestra.
The February 4 announcement sent ripples through Music City. Coming off the massive success of her Rockstar era and her recent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, few expected Parton to trade electric guitars for violins. But insiders say the inspiration came from a single moment: hearing an orchestral arrangement of “Jolene” that stripped the song of its familiar rhythm and reframed it as cinematic. Orchestrated by David Hamilton, the rendition reportedly gave Parton goosebumps. “It made the hair on my arms stand up,” she said. That was all she needed to hear: if “Jolene” could still surprise her after half a century, maybe her entire catalog deserved a new emotional life.
Threads: My Songs in Symphony will run from June 16 through July 31, 2026, at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, anchoring what city officials are calling the “Summer of Dolly.” Rather than performing live herself, Parton will serve as narrator and guide, appearing on screen to share personal stories between orchestral performances of her songs. This approach transforms the residency into a living memoir, blurring the line between concert and storytelling experience.
Live vocals will be handled by a rotating cast of guest singers personally selected by Parton, while the orchestra is conducted by Enrico Lopez-Yañez. The setlist spans her full career—from classics like “Coat of Many Colors” and “I Will Always Love You” to deeper cuts and previously unreleased material tied to her upcoming Broadway musical.
For Parton, the symphonic shift is about evolution, not reinvention. She has long described her songs as “little stories,” and the orchestra offers a larger emotional canvas. “The threads of my life are woven together through my songs,” she said in the announcement. “Hearing them this way makes you feel part of something bigger.”
The residency coincides with other major Nashville milestones, including the opening of the Songteller Hotel and the expansion of her exhibition at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, turning the city into a living tribute to her enduring impact.
At a time when most artists are celebrated for what they were, Dolly Parton continues to explore what her work can become. By entrusting her songs to a symphony, she’s not polishing her legacy—she’s challenging it. And once again, she proves that staying relevant isn’t about chasing the future; it’s about listening closely enough to hear the past in a completely new way.
