A tribute artist personally recognized by Dolly Parton herself is bringing her note-for-note recreation of the country icon's life and music to Brown County Music Center at 8 p.m. on Oct. 23. Kelly O'Brien's performance arrives less than two months after Parton's death at age 80, and the Nashville, Indiana stop will double as a community book drive for local children.
According to The Republic News, tickets for The Dolly Show are on sale through browncountymusiccenter.com, with the venue located at 200 Maple Leaf Blvd. O'Brien, who was born in McLaren Vale south of Adelaide, Australia, and now resides in Hertfordshire, England, has performed professionally for more than 25 years. She won South Australian Country Vocalist of the Year and Best New Talent at the Gympie Music Muster before securing her first recording contract at age 16, the outlet reports. O'Brien also starred in Starlight Express in 2002 before launching her Dolly tribute act in 1997.
O'Brien met Parton in person in September 2011, and the Republic News reports that Parton recognized O'Brien's tribute performance with approval from both the singer and her family. That relationship extends well beyond a friendly nod of approval. Dolly Parton Enterprises selected O'Brien as Parton's official film body double, and according to Visit Indy, she reached the finals as the sole UK candidate in the global #SearchForDolly casting call for Parton's Broadway musical. Visit Indy notes the production recreates some of Parton's most famous costumes, including rhinestone-studded gowns.
A Tribute Artist's Decades-Long Bond, Tested by Loss
O'Brien's accolades stretch back further than her Broadway near-miss. Per the City of Greater Geelong, she won the UK National Tribute Music Awards for four consecutive years as the United Kingdom's premier Dolly Parton impersonator and has toured globally with a live backing band. Her Dolly tribute act began in 1997. That long run took on new weight after Parton died on Aug. 25, 2026. The Republic News reports O'Brien described the first weeks performing after Parton's death as tough and amazing.
The Oct. 23 show itself is structured as a journey through Parton's life and work, built around costume changes and interactive moments with the crowd. The Republic News reports the performance includes audience conversations, handshakes, and personalized memories, and it closes with a rendition of “I Will Always Love You” honoring Parton's legacy.
Why Brown County Music Center, of All Stages
The venue hosting O'Brien's tribute has its own origin story tied to filling a local void. The Brown County Music Center opened on Aug. 24, 2019, with country singer Vince Gill as its inaugural performer, according to Indy South Mag, which notes the venue filled an entertainment gap left after the historic Little Nashville Opry, Brown County's primary live country venue for more than three decades, burned down in 2009. The 2,017-seat hall was designed acoustically by facility designer Steven Durr so that no attendee sits farther than 106 feet from the stage, per Wisevoter. The venue expanded its grounds this month with a timber-framed outdoor beer garden along Salt Creek, built over a year-long effort by the local Brown County Woodworking Club.
In August 2024, it disbursed $267,000 in surplus revenue from ticket, food, beverage, and parking sales to local government and the Brown County Community Foundation, fulfilling a community profit-sharing mandate for the first time, 106.1 The River reported at the time. The agreement distributes the venue's operating profits.
Book Drive Ties Concert to Local Classrooms
Beyond the music, the Oct. 23 show carries a literacy mission woven into its ticket and merchandise sales. The Republic News reports patrons are encouraged to donate new or gently used books for children from birth to age five, with donations collected before the show in a designated lobby area. That book drive partnership reflects the mission behind Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, the charity Parton founded to mail free books to young children.
The collection effort has a specific local destination. According to WBIW, the books gathered at the concert will directly benefit Brown County Schools Early Education, supplying infant, toddler, and preschool classrooms as well as high school students enrolled in the Career and Technical Education Early Childhood Pathway.
The Imagination Library's Literacy Mission
The concert's book drive reflects the mission of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, which mails free books to young children.
The Nashville, Indiana performance is a tribute to Parton's life and music.
