YORK Minster is to stage the Mystery Plays again next year - 16 years after its Millennium production attracted 28,000 people and critical acclaim.

The 800-year-old gothic cathedral will undergo a spectacular transformation into an auditorium for a month-long staging in June 2016 of the plays, which began in medieval times and which recount Biblical stories.

The Press exclusively revealed last November that Minster officials had been involved in lengthy discussions about the possibility of staging another major production in 2016, but a number of issues still needed to be resolved at that stage before a final decision could be made.

The Dean of York, the Very Reverend Vivienne Faull, said yesterday it was a 'great pleasure and enormously exciting' to confirm the re-staging of the Plays at the Minster.

York Press:

Kate McMullen, left, and the Dean of York The Very Rev Vivienne Faull, right

“This will be an important event for the city, Yorkshire and the wider Northern Province and we hope that it will inspire our local community to get involved through drama, music, education and the many satellite projects and initiatives that we hope will spin-off from the production," she said.

She also announced that the 'innovative and highly experienced' producer Nicola Corp, who lives in the York area, would oversee the planning and logistical arrangements that would be needed to get the Plays on stage.

York Press:

The crucifixion scene during the Mystery Plays at the Minster in 2000

She said Nicola had devised, managed and delivered high profile, complex projects for the BBC, including The One Show Summer Festival, in a long media production career.

"Exciting negotiations are underway for the next set of key appointments including the director, scriptwriter, artistic director and musical director and these will be announced shortly," she said.

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>>> FLASHBACK: 11 wonderful old photos of York Mystery Plays

“The Mystery Plays will become a way of life at the Minster for the next 18 months. We look forward to sharing the many stories that will emerge from the production with our communities and with the people who come from all over the world to visit this glorious cathedral.”

Kate McMullen, Head of Visit York, said she was 'delighted and hugely excited' by the news.

"An intrinsic part of York’s rich heritage, there can be no finer setting to stage this production," she said.

York Press: York Minster

The Minster will host the plays in June 2016

"We’re confident the York Mystery Plays at York Minster will attract attention around the world and add to York’s reputation for producing world-class drama and showcasing our history in a modern, creative and innovative way."

The 2000 production on a purpose-built stage in front of a specially-built stand of tiered seating was originally intended to be a one-off but, after attracting sell-out audiences including people from as far away as the USA, Australia, Japan, South Africa and even Papua New Guinea, the Minster decided to stage them again in 2010.

However, financial concerns and anxieties about a possible clash with major restoration and construction work led to the plans being abandoned.

York Press:

The plays were staged in Museum Gardens in 2012

The Plays were then successfully staged in the Museum Gardens in 2012, leaving the way open for another staging in 2016, in line with a traditional four-year cycle. Guilds, companies and groups of York have also successfully staged the quadrennial plays on pageant wagons at several spectacular outdoor locations across the city centre.

York Press:

The cast on stage in 2000