© 2020, © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Early childhood education is steeped both in historical and ideological traditions which value play as a powerful pedagogy. From an Irish perspective, early years research tends to be framed with a sociocultural perspective. This research presents a reinterpretation of play episodes using a Foucauldian lens. It documents a re-imagination of research which was originally concerned with sociodramatic play interventions. The research took place in settings with designated disadvantaged status, in the Republic of Ireland, with children aged 3–6 years. The new reinterpretation of the data outlined in this paper indicates that by adopting an alternative lens, new discourse around power dynamics in play emerges. The reimagining of the data offers new insights into play pedagogy and the ways in which children seek and find power in play episodes. The results are also used to illuminate how educators can work positively with an awareness of power dynamics. The results of the reinterpretation are used to present a challenge to dominant ideologies within the discourse of research in early childhood education.