The new Michael Edwards Studio Theatre in the former cargo hold of the Cutty Sark will be able to seat 100 for evening performances. Photo: Luke MacGregor/Reuters

Tea chests will make way for a stage at the Cutty Sark after it was announced that the famous clipper ship is set to become a theatre venue.

The lower hold of the world’s last surviving tea clipper, where tea and wool were transported over a century ago, will feature evening performances from Wednesday.

Cutty Sark, which reopened in 2012 following a £50 million restoration project after it was ravaged by fire, will remain a visitor attraction during the day.

February’s bill includes Jonathan Creek star Alan Davies performing stand-up, and comedian and presenter Griff Rhys Jones talking about “sailing, boats and mud”. The performances will take place when the hold, which contains reconstructed tea chests and artefacts relating to the 963-ton ship’s history, is transformed into an 85-seat studio theatre in the evening.

The Michael Edwards Studio Theatre will feature cabaret, comedy, music, special lectures and small-scale drama, big-name stars as well as talent from the local area in Greenwich, southeast London.

Cutty Sark director Richard Doughty said: “Our aspiration is that the development of Cutty Sark as a flexible theatre space will enable us to reach out to new audiences who can discover the ship in a whole new way.

“This opening fortnight sets the agenda for Cutty Sark to become a unique new venue in the heart of Greenwich and London.”