Webber praises Gaga's Mayhem Ball for live singing and staging

Andrew Lloyd Webber, the composer best known for Phantom of the Opera, publicly praised Lady Gaga’s Mayhem Ball show after attending a recent four-night run at London’s O2 Arena, calling it “absolutely fabulous” and applauding its live singing and theatrical staging. The 77-year-old recorded a video posted on social media in which he singled out a moment when Gaga is rowed across the auditorium in a gilded boat while singing a gothic version of Shallow, saying the image reminded him of a scene from his own work.

“I loved the Lady Gaga concert. It was really fabulous. She really knows how to handle an audience,” Webber said in the video. He added that he was particularly pleased to see performers singing live rather than miming to prerecorded tracks. “It reminded me of something that I might have had a little involvement with,” he said, referencing the Phantom of the Opera gondola scene. Gaga responded to his remarks by posting a crying emoji and writing, “This is a dream come true.”

The encounter highlights the theatrical ambitions of the Mayhem Ball, which transforms arenas into an opera-house setting and integrates operatic flourishes, elaborate sets and costuming into a...