STUDENTS from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) in Glasgow are making a move in the nation’s capital as they prepare to stage the smash-hit 1980s musical, Chess, at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre.

Next week’s Edinburgh run is the first time a musical theatre show has transferred from the Conservatoire’s New Athenaeum Theatre to the professional stage.

The production is being staged by the creative team behind the Conservatoire’s critically acclaimed productions of Cabaret and West Side Story and brings together artists and performers from across the RCS.

This month the Conservatoire, which was founded in 1845 as the Glasgow Educational Association, was revealed as one of the world’s top three performing arts education institutions.

A sell-out Glasgow run continues tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday of this week with a special fundraising gala performance on Friday.

“Taking Chess to the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh is a fantastic experience for our students, particularly for our BA musical theatre cohort, as well as our music and production students who are transferring to the professional stage for the first time,” said Professor Jeffrey Sharkey, principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Professor Andrew Panton, artistic director of musical theatre at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, added: “Chess is by far the most technically ambitious production we’ve ever tackled and, once again, the process has been special because of the student, staff and guest creative team collaboration.”