A former fish and chip shop in Coventry's City Arcade has been turned into a new performing arts venue after the local authority joined forces with Theatre Absolute.

The theatre company will use the vacant Fishey Moores property as its base for the 18 months, with its Breathe production the first to be premiered at the site. Coventry City Council is working with Theatre Absolute on the scheme, which the group's artistic director Chris O'Connell said will contribute to the regeneration of the city centre.

O'Connell said: "Creating a shop front theatre was imagined first and foremost as a cultural provocation to the city, we are diverse and prolific in the range of artists living and working in Coventry. "The city has always been renowned for its creativity and innovation, and as the region and the nation endure a time of recession, it's an opportune moment to re-think the role the arts can play in regenerating and revitalising the city centre."