Gantry

About the show

Gantry is a musical with a book by Peter Bellwood, lyrics by Fred Tobias, and music by Stanley Lebowsky. Based on the 1927 novel Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis, it tells the story of a womanizing, self-righteous, self-proclaimed preacher who joins forces with a female evangelist to sell religion to small-town Americans. After 31 previews, the Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Onna White, opened on February 14, 1970 at the George Abbott Theatre, where it closed after one performance. The cast included Robert Shaw, Rita Moreno, Ted Thurston, and Beth Fowler.