Raul Esparza is one of the few leading men who can carry a Broadway musical, but even his formidable talents are adrift in Leap of Faith. This musical adaptation of the little-seen 1992 Steve Martin film boasts considerable creative talent, but it’s a sadly derivative and lifeless effort that will not exactly leave audiences shouting “Hallelujah.”

The atmosphere is laid on thick and heavy with the St. James Theatre decked out in revival meeting fashion, the cast members greeting the audience and handing out fake money to be used for future “donations.” But the story proper takes place in the small town of Sweetwater, Kansas, where preacher/con man Jonas Nightingale (Esparza) has pitched a tent to fleece the citizens via promises of miracle healing.

Not taking kindly to the new interlopers is the town sheriff, Marla (Jessica Phillips), a single mom struggling to raise her teenage, wheelchair-bound son Jake (Talon Ackerman). But even this tough cookie is not immune to the charismatic, womanizing Jonas’ charms, tumbling into bed with him within hours of their meeting.

Normally, Jonas wouldn’t think twice about taking the religious rubes for all they’re worth. But he quickly falls for the sexy sheriff even after she throws him in jail and, much to the frustration of his sister and partner-in-crime Sam (Kendra Kassebaum), refuses to take advantage of the young boy who believes that he has the power to make him walk again.

The less than credible plot elements notwithstanding—Jonas would seem to have a pretty good argument to have his case thrown out of court, considering his accuser’s conflict of interest—the show fails to sustain interest in the main character’s crisis of conscience. But it does provide the opportunity for a series of would-be rousing gospel numbers by Alan Menken (music) and Glenn Slater (lyrics), although only the title song makes much of an impact. The rest of the score, which also features a series of country-flavored ballads, is blandly generic.

As is the formulaic book by Warren Leight and Janus Cercone, which features such characters as Jonas’ matriarchal bookkeeper, Ida Mae (the big-voiced Kecia Lewis-Evans) and her true-believer son (Leslie Odom, Jr.) who objects to Jonas’ larceny. There’s also Ida Mae’s daughter (Krystal Joy Brown), whose main function is to look pretty.

Director Christopher Ashley attempts to pull out all the stops in his elaborate staging that includes video screens for no good reason, while the perfunctory choreography by Sergio Trujillo featuring plenty of church-style hand waving and clapping.

It all adds up to very little, with a surprisingly subdued Esparza—he may be already brooding about the show’s likely fate—failing to galvanize the proceedings. 

The evening ends with Jake managing to walk with the aid of crutches and a torrential onstage rainstorm that rescues the town from its crippling drought. But even those miracles won’t be enough to make Leap of Faith a hit.   

St. James Theatre, 246 W. 44th St. 212-239-6200. www.Telecharge.com.