Church's breakout performance came in 1959 as the original Gypsy Rose Lee in Gypsy (1959),Barnes, Clive. "Gypsy Bounces Back With Zest and Lilt", New York Times, September 24, 1974Brantley, Ben. "New Momma Takes Charge" New York Times May 2, 2003.Rich, Frank. The Hot Seat: Theater Criticism for The New York Times, 1980-1993, Random House, 1998, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. In his autobiography, playwright Arthur Laurents states, "It came down to between Suzanne Pleshette and Sandra Church. Suzanne was the better actress, but Sandra was the better singer. We went with Sandra."Gates, Anita.NYTimes-21cnd-Pleshette "Suzanne Pleshette, 70, 'Newhart' Actress, Dies" (bio) The New York Times, January 21, 2008 In Gypsy, Church introduced the popular standard "Let Me Entertain You."Sondheim, Stephen, Finishing the Hat, New York: Alfred Knopf, 2010; , pp. 58-77
