Sun & Sea is the creation of director Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, playwright Vaiva Grainytė, and composer Lina Lapelytė. The production challenges the conventions of classical opera, expanding the boundaries of the genre by bringing together performance, visual art, and music.

At the heart of the work is an artificial beach, where soloists sing about the climate crisis, consumer habits, and contemporary society amidst seemingly ordinary scenes of seaside relaxation. The libretto blends humour, irony, and sharp social commentary, creating a striking contrast between the airy visual aesthetic and the weight of global existential concerns. Each musical fragment becomes an allegory of humanity’s relationship with nature, the environment, and society, triggering us to reflect on our own place within the world’s ecosystem.

Speaking ahead of the Liepāja performances, the opera’s creator Vaiva Grainytė said: “Liepāja’s proximity to the Baltic sea brings the piece back to its native shore. The opera-performance Sun and Sea was developed from both our childhood memories and our present-day experiences of the Baltic shoreline and its characters. The remnants of military presence add another layer, emphasizing the fragility voiced by the beachgoers. We are very excited for the piece to meet Latvian audiences.”