Carla Clark | For The Republic Jude Jean-Louis, left, as Gregory, and Jorge Sanchez, as Balthasar, act out a scene from the play Romeo and Juliet, during a rehearsal of the Mill Race Theatre Company’s presentation of Shakespeare’s Power Play at Columbus East High School in Columbus, Ind., Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026.
Thirteen directors and more than 30 actors will bring to life some of Shakespeare’s most “power”ful scenes at Mill Race Theatre Company’s upcoming production of “Shakespeare’s Power Play,” opening this Friday.
Whether they have had prior directing experience or none at all, the 13 directors have taken scenes from some of Shakespeare’s most popular works like “Romeo and Juliet” and “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” assembled their casts and have been working hard to get everything show ready before the big night.
“The actors have worked their hearts out,” first time director Eric Heyob said. “For being in the spotlight for two minutes, they’re treating it like a whole show and we’re show ready and ready to go.”
The show will run from Friday, Feb. 27 to Sunday, March 1 and will be held at Columbus East High School in room C110. Friday and Saturday’s shows will start at 7:30 p.m., with lobby doors opening at 6:30 p.m., while Sunday’s show will start at 2:30 p.m. and doors will open at 1:30 p.m.
Tickets cost $15 for general admission and $10 for students or those 14 and under. Tickets can be purchased at millracetheatre.org.
Julie Hult, who is directing featured monologues from “Henry V” and “The Merchant of Venice,” said this concept of multiple directors and one-act plays was something she carried over from her days of working with North Drama. It’s never been done with Mill Race before, but she believed that same concept would work with them too.
The overarching theme of all of the scenes is power, with each scene depicting a power struggle or power dynamics within family members, government or relationships. Directors were allowed to choose their own scenes, though Hult said they also provided them with suggested scenes.
“We were able to kind of fit scenes with each director, some of them that have more experience versus less experience, we just tried to make sure that we had material that was accessible to everybody…,” Hult said.
Directors and actors rehearse in their own small groups during rehearsals, and Hult and Mill Race Theatre actor Ed Phillips pop in throughout to help them if they need it and coach them through the directing process. Some directors put their own spin on their scenes like Heyob, who updated the language in his “Romeo and Juliet” scene to be more modern.
“But we are adding some Shakespearean insults, just for that little humor,” Heyob said.
Director Tamra Wright also tweaked her scene from “Measure for Measure” to have it take place in late 1800s Appalachia, as she felt setting a story she believes is very timely to today in the middle of modern times and Shakespeare’s time could be interesting.
She has been involved with Mill Race Theatre Company since she was 15, but this is her first time directing. Though they had a shorter window to rehearse with only around three weeks as opposed to Mill Race Theatre’s usual six weeks, she believes everything has been coming together well.
“So I’ve been thinking of directing for a while, I have a particular show that I’d really like to direct and I needed to build that experience and the timing was perfect,” Wright said. “And then I get some really great mentors and don’t have to feel really alone in that process.”
When it came time to cast, Hult said they had around 33 people audition, a large number that was unexpected. Actors play multiple roles across several scenes and under different directors. For example, Anna Bratton, who plays Falstaff in director Magen Pillar’s scene from “Henry IV” also plays Mercutio in director Jeremiah Trotter’s scene from “Romeo and Juliet.”
“… Mercutio is a humorous character but as a result of a serious scene, he actually ends up dying. So it is really fun to kind of get to play both sides, doing that more humorous, over-the-top sort of comedy with the ‘Henry IV’ scene and then getting to do something that starts off kind of silly in ‘Romeo and Juliet’ but then quickly turns deadly,” Bratton said. “So it’s really fun to get to flip that coin and do both.”
