Singers and actors from the Russian musical Nord-Ost have performed for the first time since Chechen gunmen burst into their theatre, taking the cast and audience hostage and leaving over 160 people dead.
Tears and applause greeted the actors as they came on stage for the memorial performance on Saturday evening.
Alexander Tsekalo, the musical's producer, told the packed audience: "We want to show with today's performance that we've been hurt but we are still alive. Nord-Ost might be wounded and limping but it survived and it will go on."
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The memorial concert, based in the concert hall of Moscow's huge Rossia Hotel, was scheduled weeks ago to mark the first anniversary of the successful musical.
But after last month's siege at the Dubrovka theatre, the concert was retitled "Nord-Ost, we're with you".
"Our concert is in honour of those who died, were injured or are in hospital," said Yekaterina Guseva, who plays the lead female role.
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During the show, writer-producer Georgy Vasilyev asked for a minute's silence as a mark of respect.
But he also then urged the audience to continue in their theatre-going ways, "as we must not let evil conquer".
Eight places in the orchestra were left empty during the performance to mark the absence of the eight musicians who died during the attack.
The takings from the concerts - and a second show on Sunday - will go towards helping the musical get back on its feet.
Nord-Ost has been virtually bankrupted by the material losses suffered in the siege.
"If we are able to gather some donations for restoring the musical, then that would be a blessing," said Eorgia Vasilev, Nord-Ost's theatre director.
The performers are now preparing to take Nord-Ost on a tour of Russia, and negotiations are even under way to take the show to Israel.
Eventually, however, the Russian Government would like to see it return to its original venue as a symbol of victory over terrorism.
The Dubrovka theatre is expected to reopen in mid-January, following repairs mostly financed by the government, but many of the organisers and cast are still reluctant to return to the scene of the attack.
