Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede
Dixie Stampede is a dinner theater with three locations in the Southern United States. Dixie Stampede is owned by Dolly Parton and The Dollywood Company, a branch of the Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation.
Locations
The first location opened in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in 1988, just outside the entrance to Parton's theme park, Dollywood. Today, it is a dinner and show with locations in three Southern cities: Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (1988), Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (1992), and Branson, Missouri (1995).
A fourth location, in Orlando, Florida, opened in June 2003 and ceased operations in January 2008 when the property was sold to the outlet mall across the parking lot so they could expand. Dolly said that they were looking for a new location in Orlando to rebuild. [1]. The abrupt Orlando closure left almost 200 people out of a job. The company denied the closing as early as the Saturday before, shocking employees. Some, having worked at the location for five years, felt it was a wrong way to do business. [1]
The show
One hour prior to the main dinner and show, guests are seated in a "Carriage Room" where they view an opening act. Each location has a different opening act; in Tennessee, there is a live band, Mountain Ruckus, playing bluegrass and country music.
At show time, all guests are escorted into the arena, where the Dixie Stampede dinner and show begins. Although the attraction bears her name, Parton doesn't appear in person.
The performance is essentially a modern-day Wild West revue, pitting sections of the audience against each other in a good-natured way as "the South" and "the North" battle to win various horse riding competitions. It is also said that if you are close enough to the stage, dirt will fly into your plate from the horses running around in the arena.
Each location features a show with 32 horses, dozens of cast members, ostrich races, and a live buffalo. At the Tennessee show there are also live pig races. Seating varies by location. There are Quarter Horse and Palomino breeds plus Appaloosa and Paint breeds.
After the show, everyone exits through a souvenir shop. Outside the complex is the Horse Walk, where visitors can meet the animal stars of the show, as well as their keepers.
Food
The meal, which is made fresh daily and baked on property, consists of a whole rotisserie chicken, hickory smoked barbecue pork loin, creamy vegetable soup, homemade biscuit, corn on the cob, herb-basted baked potato, an iced apple turnover, and unlimited Pepsi, tea, or coffee.
The meal is usually served without dining utensils, and vegetarian meals are available upon request.
References
External links
- Dixie Stampede (official site)
- Dollywood
- Herschend Family Entertainment
