Brandon PT Davis
Production photograph for Romero at University of Missouri; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.
Wide house perspective of the Romero set with layered playing spaces at University of Missouri.
Lighting and scenic texture interplay in a dramatic scene from Romero at University of Missouri.
The world premiere as a ritual memory space for Romero at University of Missouri.
Final production view of Romero showing the full environment and actor pathways at University of Missouri.
Actors positioned within the architectural and symbolic scenic world of Romero at University of Missouri.

Romero

University of Missouri · Drama · 2025

About this project

When I first read Xiomara Cornejo's Romero, I knew the scenic design had to hold more than history; it had to hold ghosts. Set in the final hours of Archbishop Oscar Romero's life, the play bends time and invites the dead to speak. It is not realism. It is ritual.

The world emerged from the tension between sacredness and rupture. A cruciform arch stood at the center, part cathedral and part memory portal, while a fractured platform and textured black floor anchored the action in both earth and spirit.

The play's nonlinear structure required a space that could shift between beach, church, war zone, and afterlife without literal transitions. The design left room for silence, projection, masks, and witness, allowing the room to carry spiritual reckoning as much as image.

KBIA Interview

Credits

Playwright
Xiomara Cornejo
Director
David Crespy
Scenic Designer
Brandon PT Davis
Costume Designer
Mark Vital
Lighting Designer
Vincete Williams
Sound Designer
Michael Webb & Joseph Seevers
Projection Design
Cherie Sampson
Puppetry
Lil Lamberta & Claire Bronchick
Production photograph for Romero at University of Missouri; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Romero

The world premiere of Romero was staged as a ritual container for memory, rupture, and spiritual reckoning rather than a literal historical reconstruction.

Year
2025
Project
Drama
Location
Columbia, MO
Wide house perspective of the Romero set with layered playing spaces at University of Missouri.

When I first read Xiomara Cornejo's Romero, I knew the scenic design had to hold more than history; it had to hold ghosts. Set in the final hours of Archbishop Oscar Romero's life, the play bends time and invites the dead to speak. It is not realism. It is ritual.

The world emerged from the tension between sacredness and rupture. A cruciform arch stood at the center, part cathedral and part memory portal, while a fractured platform and textured black floor anchored the action in both earth and spirit.

The play's nonlinear structure required a space that could shift between beach, church, war zone, and afterlife without literal transitions. The design left room for silence, projection, masks, and witness, allowing the room to carry spiritual reckoning as much as image.

Lighting and scenic texture interplay in a dramatic scene from Romero at University of Missouri.
The world premiere as a ritual memory space for Romero at University of Missouri.

Creative team

Playwright
Xiomara Cornejo
Director
David Crespy
Scenic Designer
Brandon PT Davis
Costume Designer
Mark Vital
Lighting Designer
Vincete Williams
Sound Designer
Michael Webb & Joseph Seevers
Projection Design
Cherie Sampson
Puppetry
Lil Lamberta & Claire Bronchick
Final production view of Romero showing the full environment and actor pathways at University of Missouri.
Actors positioned within the architectural and symbolic scenic world of Romero at University of Missouri.
Production photograph for Million Dollar Quartet at South Coast Repertory Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Million Dollar Quartet

An ensemble musical number activates the colorful two-level surf-town setting for The Merry Wives of Windsor Cove at New Swan Theatre Company.

The Merry Wives of Windsor Cove

Production photograph for The Glass Menagerie at Maples Repertory Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

The Glass Menagerie

Production photograph for Bell, Book, and Candle at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Bell, Book, and Candle

Production photograph for Head Over Heels at Theatre SilCo; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Head Over Heels

The ensemble dances across the open floor of the Great Depression-era scenic design for Romeo and Juliet for Romeo & Juliet at New Swan Theatre Company.

Romeo & Juliet

Production photograph for Much Ado About Nothing at New Swan Theatre Festival; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Much Ado About Nothing

Production photograph for ¡LOTERIA: GAME ON! at Theatre SilCo; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

¡LOTERIA: GAME ON!

Production photograph for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Lake Dillon Theatre Company; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

Production photograph for Romero at University of Missouri; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Romero

Production photograph for Urinetown at University of Missouri; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Urinetown

The Birling family gathered in the dining room in An Inspector Calls at Okoboji Summer Theatre.

An Inspector Calls

Production photograph for All's Well That Ends Well at New Swan Theatre Festival; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

All's Well That Ends Well

Production photograph for Little Shop of Horrors at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Little Shop of Horrors

Production photograph for Tomás and the Library Lady at Lake Dillon Theatre Company; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Tomás and the Library Lady

Production photograph for The Penelopiad at University of California Irvine; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

The Penelopiad

Production photograph for Company at University of California Irvine; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Company

Production photograph for American Idiot at University of California Irvine; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

American Idiot

Production photograph for Parliament Square at University of California Irvine; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Parliament Square

Production photograph for An Enemy of the People at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

An Enemy of the People

Production photograph for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Production photograph for Boeing, Boeing at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Boeing, Boeing

Production photograph for The Bald Soprano at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

The Bald Soprano

Production photograph for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

Production photograph for The Man of La Mancha at Lake Dillon Theatre Company; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

The Man of La Mancha

Production photograph for Dial “M” for Murder at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Dial “M” for Murder

Production photograph for All My Sons at Stephens College; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

All My Sons

Production photograph for Last Train to Nibroc at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Last Train to Nibroc

Production photograph for Rich Girl at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Rich Girl

Production photograph for Angel Street at Okoboji Summer Theatre; scenic design by Brandon PT Davis.

Angel Street