Lots in store at Dollywood for 2024 season
PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (WJHL) — Dollywood is gearing up to open for its 39th season next month. There are some big and small changes that parkgoers will notice as soon as they step through the gates.
Guests will enter through a QR code system as the turnstiles have been removed. Dollywood leaders say this will cut the entrance time down to one second from eight to ten.
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Some changes are also coming to Lightning Rod. The wooden coaster is moving from a launch system to a high-speed chain like a more traditional coaster.
“The old ride experience you went over the hill at 13 miles an hour, the new ride experience, you’re going over the hill at the same speed,” said Eugene Naughton, president of the Dollywood Company. “The really big difference is up time will go from about 63% to very close to 99%.”
The ride shut down last season and is set to re-open in mid-March.
Dollywood is opening with three new shows this year and wants to keep all theatres open except during show changeover.
“It’s a big part of who we are as a park and we put more entertainment into our complex than any other theme park you could possibly visit in the United States,” Naughton said.
The new shows also pay homage to the park’s Dreamer-in-Chief, Dolly Parton.
Trio Again features Nashville trio Three Times a Lady and is a tribute to Parton’s Trio album with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt. There will also be a Sing-a-Long with Dolly show and From the Heart.
“[From the Heart is] a live production show telling the story of Dolly Parton’s life and songs live on stage,” Naughton said. “We actually had a Broadway New York producer create the show for us and it’s of spectacular quality.”
But the biggest change won’t be ready until the end of May.
The Chasing Rainbows Museum is being revamped into the Dolly Parton Experience. What was a one-building museum will soon be a multi-part immersive experience. Everything, even the restrooms in that area is being “Dollyized.” There will even be a Dolly Parton Fan Shop.
“Our guests are clamoring for more Dolly and this is just going to fill that cup up,” Naughton said. “Being able to tell her story better and connect her story to our guests better in an emotional way I think will pay long-term dividends. I think the world really needs it. I think everyone needs a little bit more of Dolly Parton.”
The Songteller Museum allows fans to walk through different aspects of Parton’s life like her childhood, move to Nashville, and movie and musical careers.
“We really had to dig in and do a lot of reading, a lot of research, a lot of listening to her interviews and listening to her songs in a new and different and deeper way,” said Cyndi McCormack, Dollywood’s vice president for guest experiences. “It was all a part of the research that we were doing and trying to select the stories that were most important to her.”
People walk in through a 40-foot butterfly. There’s a 360-degree musical experience and a 15-foot guitar too.
“Our immersive room inside of Songteller where we will wrap the entire room, a 40 by 40-foot room fully wrapped with imagery and mapping and bringing her story to life,” McCormack said.
Behind the Seams is just across the path and pays tribute to her wardrobe and features media moments with her creative director, Steve Summers, and her niece and archivist, Rebecca Seaver.
“Her look is what kind of sets her apart from any other star,” McCormack said. “When our guests have an opportunity to see her wardrobe to see the process for how her outfits are put together, there’s a very intentional process.”
There are also different photo opportunities throughout the experience and the chance to “dress Dolly” with a virtual paper doll experience.
“Whether it’s a photo opp sitting at Dolly’s vanity, or being on the swing from her 1960s television show, all of those are memories that people will be able to snap and take home,” McCormack said. “Then just all of the interactions, being able to see and hear what Dolly’s stories and songs are all about.”
Dolly’s other niece, Heidi Parton, is working with her to write the family show that will play in the revitalized theatre in that section of the park.
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This is the first major overhaul to that section since Chasing Rainbows was built in 2002 and McCormack says Dolly is even excited about the update.
“She’s very pleased with what we’re telling her about this experience- getting giddy,” McCormack said. “There are parts where she literally gets excited and giddy and you can kind of see some emotion rising up and so that’s how we know we’ve done it well.”
Dollywood leaders say the Dolly Parton Experience also has the latest technology to allow for upgrades in the future.
“What we’ve seen is a Dolly Parton who never stops. And so we feel like we too can never stop,” McCormack said. “We believe that we’ve designed an experience that can move along and grow along as she continues to deliver new experiences and new thoughts and new ideas, new songs and new performances.“
Dollywood’s Dreammore resort is also going through its first “refresh” since it opened in 2015 with rooms being updated and modernized.
Dollywood opens for season pass holders on March 8 and to the general public the day after. The Dolly Parton Experience is set to open on May 24.
The park is also open longer and for more days this season.
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