Peppers and the Underworld City

This year’s biggest show for the whole family, PEPPERS AND THE UNDERWORLD CITY, is a colourful concert-theatre performance featuring music, dancing, pyrotechnics and special effects, with K-POP songs. K-POP undoubtedly holds a special place in the world of music, and this musical show is an extraordinary journey in which K-POP songs and hip-hop dancing create a unique atmosphere, inviting everyone to immerse themselves in the wonder of contemporary music.

The performance will also introduce the first book in the PEPPERS series, written by popular children’s author Tomas Dirgėla. The book is special because it has been created in a completely new, contemporary style, combining music made specifically for the book and performances with innovative ways of telling stories. The book includes QR codes that you can scan to hear new songs and immerse yourself even more deeply in the PEPPERS’ adventures.

Music will be an important part of the entire “PEPPERS” project. A new music group with the same name is also being introduced, with original K-POP-inspired songs created for it and more in development. Alongside pieces written specifically for “PEPPERS,” audiences at the concert-theatre performance will also hear K-POP music that has become popular around the world and is associated with names such as KATSEYE and BTS, as well as the film “KPop Demon Hunters.”

Actor Ainis Storpirštis will play the Underworld Ruler; Liepa Šideikytė will play Saulė, Liucija Nanartavičiūtė will play Maja, Kasparas Varanavičius will play Leo, and Edas Vieta will play Lukas. Tomas Dirgėla himself will also appear on stage, alongside professional hip-hop dancers. The performance is directed by Andrius Žiurauskas.

According to the book’s author, T. Dirgėla, the idea of creating a story inspired by K-POP culture came about quite naturally: his children sparked his interest in this musical and visual phenomenon. “At one point, the children became very interested in a popular film in this style. They kept asking me to put on its songs and talking about it all the time. Eventually, I decided to watch it myself. I put it on once, got hooked, watched it a second and third time, and in total probably four or five times,” T. Dirgėla says.

The writer says that K-POP’s appeal to young audiences lies in more than just the music. This culture brings together sound, a vivid and engaging visual world, and choreography, while also bringing young people together in communities of shared interests. T. Dirgėla says that combining Lithuanian content with the hugely popular K-POP culture around the world became one of the most interesting aspects of the new project. “What makes both the book and the performance distinctive is K-POP culture and an original interpretation of it being created in Lithuania—something we have not had before. I very much hope children will find it just as fun and appealing as the examples they love from abroad,” says the book’s author.

The first PEPPERS story centres on four heroes, with friendship, adventure and the ability to work together as its main themes. “However different the characters may be, by joining forces they can become one big fist and overcome even those problems that…”