STUDENTS are set to turn one of Cheshire’s finest country homes into a theatre.

More than 60 young people from Priestley College have created dance and musical pieces to perform in different rooms at Arley Hall near Northwich on February 14.

“We’ve not seen anything like this at Arley before and it will be a unique way to for people to see the hall,” said general manager Garry Fortune.

“We’ve been working closely with the students and it sounds like they have come up with some great ideas about how to use the space.”

Contemporary dance and live music will be performed in Arley Hall’s library, dining hall and up the ornate staircase.

A team of students studying performing arts and music have devised the choreography and production arts students have taken responsibility for managing and marketing the event.

Jess Collins, aged 17, said they were looking forward to performing in the grandeur of the home, which is owned by Lord and Lady Ashbrook.

“It is an amazing set in itself,” she said.

“We’re hoping to bring it to life with some great music and performances.”

Students are currently rehearsing for the event at college in spaces marked out to the size of Arley’s historic rooms. Guests will be greeted with a complimentary glass of wine and nibbles in the Tudor Barn before making their way into the hall itself.

There will be two performances, one starting at 7.30pm and the other at 8.30pm.

Tickets for the two performances – which can each accommodate 100 people – are available by calling Priestley College on 633591 and asking for the cash office between 10am and 2pm.