A cinema space is set to be transformed into a theatre.

Broadway Cinema’s Screen One will double up as a theatre if plans for the Letchworth GC venue are approved by North Hertfordshire District Council.

Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation plan to add dressing rooms and a stage to the cinema in Eastcheap by extending the car park side of Screen One, meaning the 460-seater auditorium could be changed from a cinema to theatre, and back, overnight.

The project aims to create a space that could host a range of productions, such as theatre, children’s shows, live comedy and acoustic music.

Currently the cinema, which has four screens, hosts blockbuster films, as well as live screenings of opera and theatre which were introdcued in 2013.

The planning application for the conversion is expected to be submitted imminently and the Heritage Foundation hope to be welcoming its first plays to the cinema in late 2015.

Heritage Foundation chief executive John Lewis said: “Adding a theatre to the cinema is a cost-effective way to drive the plans forward. Live screenings have proved such a success we know there is an appetite for more great arts events in the town.”

The move is part of the Heritage Foundation’s work to create a cultural and leisure hub around the cinema.

The Da Vinci School of Creative Enterprise opened in autumn last year, and Prezzo is currently in the process of opening an Italian restaurant opposite the cinema.