Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road was a 1974 off-Broadway

Off-Broadway

Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...

 production directed by Tom O'Horgan

Tom O'Horgan

Tom O'Horgan was an American theatre and film director, composer, actor and musician. He is best known for his Broadway work as director of the hit musicals Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar...

. It opened at the Beacon Theatre in New York on November 17, 1974 and ran for a total of 66 performances.

The plot tells of a Candide

Candide

Candide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best ; Candide: or, The Optimist ; and Candide: or, Optimism...

-like rock music

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 singer, Billy Shears, who marries Strawberry Fields

Strawberry Fields Forever

"Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and attributed to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership. It was inspired by Lennon's memories of playing in the garden of a Salvation Army house named "Strawberry Field" near his childhood home."Strawberry Fields...

. Billy loses her to death, and his own integrity to Maxwell's Silver Hammer

Maxwell's Silver Hammer

"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" is a song by The Beatles, on their album, Abbey Road, sung by Paul McCartney. It was written by McCartney, though credited to Lennon–McCartney.-Background:...

men, Jack, Sledge and Claw, dressed in chain mail

Chain Mail

"Chain Mail" is a single by Mancunian band James, released in March 1986 by Sire Records, the first after the band defected from Factory Records. The record was released in two different versions, as 7" single and 12" EP, with different artworks by John Carroll and, confusingly, under different...

 and representing the Hells Angels

Hells Angels

The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club is a worldwide one-percenter motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation. Their primary motto...

 of the commercial music business. Billy's bête noire is a temptress named Lucy

Lucy

Lucy is an English and French feminine given name derived from Latin masculine given name Lucius with the meaning as of light . Alternative spellings are Luci, Luce, Lucie...

.

Among the original cast were Ted Neeley

Ted Neeley

Ted Neeley is a rock and roll drummer, singer, actor, composer, and record producer. He is probably best known for performing the title role in the film Jesus Christ Superstar in 1973....

 as Billy Shears and Alaina Reed as Lucy. David Patrick Kelly

David Patrick Kelly

David Patrick Kelly is an American actor and musician who has appeared in numerous films, including some major roles.-Career:...

 played Sgt.Pepper.

The musical would later be loosely adapted into the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...

film.

John Lennon once attended a showing of the play in 1974. It was caught on film in the original promo video for "Whatever Gets You Through The Night".