A cinema is planning a silent tribute to its centenary celebrations later this year.

Skipton ’s Plaza Cinema will show a masterpiece of the silent movie era, but instead of piped music, it hopes to have real life musicians playing along.

Cinema manager Paul Mason said he hoped the idea would appeal to musicians who would want to take part in a one-off special event.

“We’re looking for all sorts of musicians, pianists, organists – anyone who can be part of an orchestra,” he said.

So far, he’s not decided what classic black-and-white film to show, but has considered Friz Lang’s Metropolis and the German expressionist classic Nosfaratu directed by FW Murnau.

“Metropolis is a fantastic film and it would be great to play that for our centenary,” he said.

The cinema, which will mark its 100th anniversary in September or October, is also planning a series of matinee performances of old classics.

“We’re asking people to suggest films they want to see, there are so many fantastic old films, and we want people to tell us what they want to see,” he said.