Dolly Parton performs on the Pyramid Stage.
As Dolly has quite a reputation for being a great Southern cook, she shared what her "signature" recipes are. Her chicken and dumplings (get the recipe) are what the family asks for the most. Her next most requested meal is pork roast with gravy and "everything that goes with it." She says she makes it "like my mama and grandmas and my aunts."
Family and home are extremely important to her. Though she has traveled the world, home is and will always be the Smoky Mountains. She has sisters in Nashville, but the rest of her family still lives in East Tennessee. Several years ago, she bought the "old home place" and "fixed it up as a retreat," giving her the feeling of home with all of the perks you could ask for.
She plans to open the DreamMore Resort at Dollywood next year to bring that feeling to her guests. The resort will offer 307 rooms and suites with big porches for family reunions. She talked about the new project and the focus on family that will be the center point, saying, "I’m such a family-oriented person myself, being brought up in a big one. And I think it’s so important—especially in this day and time. With the resort, we want to inspire people to bring their families and connect again. In this high-tech world, everybody is off in his or her own little world and always on some smartphone or a computer or something, and we’re not connecting as a family. Everybody is living separately, together. We’re trying to encourage people to bond with family again…at least for a vacation."
Faith is another very important part of Dolly's life. When asked how her faith, country roots and big family contributed to her success, Dolly responded, "Well, it’s all kept me sane. It’s kept me stable. A belief in God is essential. You have to believe in something bigger than yourself. We grew up believing that through God all things are possible. I think I believed that so much that I made it happen. I just live by that Scripture. The fact that I can write is very helpful, too. I can write about anything I feel. Also, family helps me stay grounded and humble. I know what it’s like to be without, and I know what it’s like to have things. And I appreciate both."
