ºÃÉ«tv

News has spread quickly since the show began previews this week, and hundreds have gathered outside the historic venue in London’s West End theaterland to enjoy the free serenade by the star.

The show’s composer, , said that it makes for “an extraordinary moment� in his musical about a woman who rose from poverty to power and was adored by the masses.

“Within the theater, it’s really exciting because suddenly you see her with a genuine huge crowd, which you can’t do onstage,� Lloyd Webber told The Associated Press on Thursday. “I think there will be people who are disappointed that she hasn’t sung it live in the theater, but I think it’s goinag to be greatly outweighed by the theatricality of using film in that way."

The decision by director has sparked some grumbling from ticketholders who paid up to 245 pounds ($330) for a seat, only for the musical's most famous number to be sung offstage.

It’s a technique Lloyd has used before. He had a character in “Sunset Boulevard� perform a song while walking down the street outside the theater, and his production of “Romeo and Juliet� saw star Tom Holland play a key scene on the theater roof.

Theater blogger Carl Woodward told the BBC that he could understand why some theatregoers who’d forked out for a ticket felt “a bit aggrieved,� since “a trip to the theater for some is really a once-a-year occasion.�

But Lloyd Webber cited an opinion piece in The Times of London noting that the gesture is “kind of what Eva Perón would have wanted — that people are actually experiencing her big anthem, as it were, for free.�

___

Lizzie Knight contributed to this report.