Dolly Parton’s stage costumes are coming to Denver this fall

The world lost Dolly Parton on Tuesday (Aug. 25). The queen of country music died peacefully in Nashville at age 80 after a brief battle with cancer, her family announced, and the outpouring of love and grief has been exactly as enormous as the woman herself. For fans in Colorado still processing the loss, there will soon be a way to feel close to her again, and it’s already been in the works for months.

The Denver Art Museum opens “DIVA” on Oct. 4, a blockbuster exhibition from London’s Victoria and Albert Museum that Denver is the exclusive U.S. venue for. The show features nearly 250 objects and more than 60 costumes from nearly 100 iconic performers, and among them are two of Dolly Parton’s stage costumes. The self-styled “Backwoods Barbie” has her own section in the exhibition, honoring the woman who turned rhinestones, wigs and unapologetic glamour into a declaration of identity. In early January, DAM will also host a conversation with longtime members of The Dolly Parton Archives about the process of curating and preserving her legacy.

What was planned as a celebration of diva culture will now inevitably carry a deeper weight. Standing in front of the costumes Dolly wore onstage, the ones she bedazzled and sequined and made unmistakably hers, will hit different now. The exhibit runs Oct. 4 through Jan. 31, 2027, in the Hamilton Building, Level 2. Adult tickets start at $29, youth 18 and under are $5, and your ticket includes access to the full museum plus a headset with musical accompaniment throughout the exhibition. Alongside Dolly, the show features costumes from Marilyn Monroe, Cher, Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, Lady Gaga, RuPaul, Prince, Taylor Swift and a display exclusive to Denver honoring Mexican film legend María Félix.

Tickets are on sale now at denverartmuseum.org.