The deadly 2002 siege of the Moscow Dubrovka theatre has become the backbone of a new performance being staged in New York. ╜"I Plead Guilty" is a war of words and emotions waged by two young women who find themselves on the opposite sides of reality: one a hostage, the other a suicide bomber. "This play shows a woman`s perspective on those bloody events and how, in spite of cultural barriers, we do in fact have so much in common," stage director Natalia Pelevina told RIA news agency. On October 23, 2002, forty terrorists from Russia`s North Caucasus region seized the theatre building in the southeast of Moscow, taking 914 hostages. Two days later, a SWAT team freed most of the hostages. 130 lives were lost, however. Pelevina said that the script of "I Plead Guilty" is been based on documentary material and thorough research, as well as accounts from the witnesses of the tragedy. She also explained that the portrait of the journalist Natasha, who tries to find a common language with the woman-terrorist, was inspired by Anna Politkovskaya`s charismatic personality. Among those who attended the premiere of the performance in New York was Nastya Kurbatova, whose sister, a promising actress, was killed during the siege when she was 13 year old. "I could hardly image that children can be taken hostage. I was the last person Kristina talked to from inside the theatre. She said she was sending me and our parents her love," Kurbatova recalled. The New York performance was made possible through private donations and the work of volunteers who shared their grief with members of the Russian families who lost their beloved ones in the tragedy. The stage director was quoted as saying that she was hoping to present "I Plead Guilty" in Moscow where she grew up and where the tragedy would be remembered forever.