Mike Wolanin | The Republic Abi Knollman, as Cinderella, rehearses a scene for Columbus East’s production of Game of Tiaras in the auditorium at Columbus East High School in Columbus, Ind., Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025.
It’s Shakespeare, it’s princesses, it’s “Game of Thrones.” But most importantly, it’s a twisted tragic comedy that is sure to leave audience members in stitches.
“Game of Tiaras,” presented by Columbus East High School’s theatre department, will be premiering this Friday at 7 p.m. in Robbins Auditorium, followed by a Saturday performance at 7 p.m. and a Sunday performance at 2:30 p.m.
Tickets cost $8 for those 14 and up and $5 for those two to 13 years old. Columbus East staff, students and those under two years old are free. Tickets can be purchased at onthestage.tickets/show/columbus-east-hs-performing-arts.
Written by Doug Zolidis, the story combines plot points of Shakespeare’s King Lear with knock-off Disney princesses Tragedy ensues when an aging king attempts to split his empire between his three daughters Cinderella, Belle and the Snow Queen.
There’s also plenty of references and themes from “Game of Thrones,” senior Cedar Thompson said, like the Queen of the North and the Iron Throne.
She plays Narrator 1, introducing the show and describing things that audience members might not get. She did not come into the play planning to get any specific role, but she likes that she gets to break the fourth wall and be loud, she said.
“We have a running joke between us two narrators. Whenever something silly or stupid happens on stage, we joke with each other, ‘did you write that? I didn’t write that. Why did you write that?,’” Thompson said. “And it’s just really funny that we get to have that kind of side plot almost.”
Audience members are in for a good laugh, an interesting plot and characters they’re sure to get attached to, Thompson said. She warns, however, that getting attached to them is not a good idea as it is a tragic comedy.
“It’s just overall a very fun show,” Thompson said. “Whether you get the references or not, it’s very worthwhile to come see it.”
Auditorium director Kevin Welsh chose this play as he’s always wanted to do a production written by Doug Zolidis, who he said has a knack for writing for high school students. It also has a lot of characters which gives a lot of actors an opportunity to participate, he said.
“If you see the show, you’ll see that there are lots of smaller roles that newer kids aren’t used to it yet,” Welsh said. “They were able to play roles that gets them into theatre, so it’s a really good vehicle for high school age kids.”
Some freshmen and sophomores are playing bigger roles, he said. Freshman Ruth Burdick plays Other Princess 3, but she also plays a peasant, a crowd member and a soldier. As Other Princess 3, her official title, she said she is one of the Little Mermaid’s half sisters.
“I get to sing a song, which is, I mean, awesome,” Burdick said. “I love to sing.”
Burdick has been acting since the first grade, but this production is her first at Columbus East. She said it’s a very fun play to do and a very fun role to portray as she gets to deliver lots of comedic lines. Though it’s all very new to her, she said she has enjoyed being a part of the production and it’s been a great experience.
“My drama club teachers in eighth and seventh grade would say, ‘oh… high school’s so scary, you got to learn all these lines.’ It’s really not that bad,” Burdick said.
Rehearsals have gone well, Welsh said, but the biggest challenge always is the student actors being a part of so many other commitments like marching band and speech. He said they have a lot of cast members who are dedicated to performing arts and have been great at quickly memorizing their lines.
The few upperclassmen they have, like Thompson, have also been great role models and leaders for the younger students, he said.
“I’ve seemed to have taken the role of the mama bird to some of our younger actors,” Thompson said. “It’s quite fun teaching them the do’s and don’ts of theatre, just seeing them embrace their own form of acting and learn their characters and their lines, and I think we’re all having quite a lot of fun.”
