YOU have been summoned for jury service, reads the flyer invitation to Theatre Mill's spring production of Witness For The Prosecution in the York Guildhall Council Chambers.

This is a landmark event for Agatha Christie's courtroom drama: the first ever site-specific staging of this intricate play of murder and mystery, much to the delight of the Christie estate.

"I t was a mutual meeting of minds because my concept of the production married well with what Agatha Christie Ltd had in mind for it," says Samuel Wood, who is directing his third successive Theatre Mill show.

Set up by producer Rebecca Stafford last year, the York professional theatre company specialises in presenting classic works in historic, non-theatrical settings, making their debut last July and August with Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest in the Mansion House, the Lord Mayor of York's residency.

In November, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes And The Speckled Band was presented in the stone-floored chill of the Great Hall at Treasurer's House, the National Trust property in York, and at Ripley Castle, seat of the Ingilby baronetcy at Ripley, near Harrogate.

Rehearsals for both were conducted in the depths of the Guildhall, and it was that there that Samuel was first struck by the thought of directing a courtroom drama in the council chambers. "The door was ajar for the chambers one day when we rehearsing the Sherlock Holmes play, and that was the moment we started thinking about what we could do in there," he says.

Witness For The Prosecution was the preferred choice with its twisting, turning tale of the murder trial of Leonard Vole, who stands accused of killing a rich widow after she bequeathed him a substantial sum of money. The verdict is only the beginning in a case marked by a shocking witness testimony and impassioned outbursts from the dock as a young man fights to escape the hangman's noose.

Theatre Mill duly contacted Agatha Christie Ltd's stage consultant, whose positive response was to request a meeting. "They reason they wanted one was that they had been waiting for years for a company to come forward to do a site-specific production, because it was something that not only they were interested but apparently Agatha Christie was once too. It's a fantastic asset for us to have their support," says Samuel, who also confirmed that representatives from the Christie estate would be attending next month's production.

The director promises to "serve the play as it is, as it was intended". "The concept of playing it in a live environment, with the audience in the chambers seating, like a courtroom public gallery, is strong enough without throwing anything more at it," he says.

"When you think of the gravity of the Christie canon, I feel privileged to be in a position to do this play, which is not done as often as it should be and is something completely different from Miss Marple or Poirot."

Theatre Mill presents Agatha Christie's Witness For The Prosecution, The Guildhall Council Chambers, York, April 2 to 20. Performances: Wednesdays to Saturdays, 7.30pm; Thursday, Saturday and Sunday matinees, 2pm. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk