For her 6th birthday party in January, Amy Tzagournis’ daughter Hazel wanted special guests: the characters from “KPop Demon Hunters.” Six months prior, while Tzagournis was out of town, her daughter and 4-year-old son had become obsessed.

“I came back and all of a sudden they knew every word to the songs,” she says with disbelief. “I was like, ‘Where did this come from?’ It was literally out of nowhere.”

So Tzagournis, of Redondo Beach, hired Funky Divas & Dudes, one of the many characters-for-hire companies in the Los Angeles area that had started to offer “KPop Demon Hunters”-inspired performers. At her birthday party, Hazel and her friends danced to songs from the movie, including “Golden” and “Soda Pop,” alongside the entertainers.

“We’ve pretty much been doing nothing but ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ parties,” Dana Marie Lazzareschi, one of the co-owners of Funky Divas & Dudes, says. “Every party we’re doing has been ‘KPop.’ It’s insane. We’ve had one party that was Broadway-themed and another that was tropical-themed, but other than that, it’s all been ‘KPop’ every single weekend. Sometimes we have five ‘KPop’ parties in one day.”

Released last June, “KPop Demon Hunters” is a bona fide global sensation, a status that not even Netflix, its distributor, anticipated. By August, when Tzagournis’ daughter first saw it at a friend’s house, the movie about three glamorous K-pop stars doubling as brave warriors to defeat nefarious demons had become Netflix’s most-watched movie ever. And in March, the musical picked up two Academy Awards, one for best animated feature and another for best original song for “Golden,” an empowering anthem turned chart-topping hit.

Nearly half of all of the birthday parties Tzagournis has taken her kids to in the last six months featured some “KPop Demon Hunters” element, whether just the theme or performers (for her daughter’s party, she hired all three demon hunters and a Saja Boy). The parties are so frequent that parents are even sharing decorations to reduce costs, she says.

The party included Saja Boys-themed party favor bags and “VIP” passes for guests.

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“One of my daughter’s good friends had a party two weeks before hers and we basically recycled all the ‘KPop’ decorations for her,” Tzagournis says, laughing. “We used theirs and then I passed them off to another mom. These ‘KPop’ decorations for the birthday party got recycled at least two or three times.”

Operating since 2002, Funky Divas & Dudes, like most of these party businesses, offers princesses, superheroes and other pop culture-inspired characters. For a long time, Elsa, the Snow Queen from Disney’s “Frozen” franchise, ruled over little girls’ parties. “We joke that it’s a generational thing, every 10 years a girl with a braid shows up and takes over every kid’s birthday party playlist. There was Elsa back in the day, and now there’s Rumi,” Lazzareschi says, referring to the main heroine in “KPop Demon Hunters.”

The displacement of “Frozen” was also evident to Tzagournis. “The year before, when my daughter was almost 5, everyone was dressed up like Elsa. There were like five Elsas in her class at Halloween,” she recalls. “And this past year, more than 50% of the girls around her age were one of the ‘KPop’ characters.”

Aside from party entertainment, Funky Divas & Dudes also hosts extracurricular dance classes at L.A.-area schools, including the one Tzagournis’ daughter attends. Lazzareschi realized the popularity of the movie when children started requesting “Golden” and other songs from the soundtrack during dance classes. While “Frozen,” she thinks, was geared toward younger audiences, “KPop Demon Hunters” has a broader appeal. “It’s very attractive to all ages, not just the little kindergartners and first graders, but all the way up to third, fourth, fifth graders,” Lazzareschi says. “There are just so many different aspects, like the martial arts, and kids just love that stuff, boys and girls.”

Companies like Funky Dudes & Divas had to quickly meet the demand for the “KPop” characters at L.A. kids’ parties, sourcing costumes from Halloween stores or online retailers. On top of the three demon hunters (Rumi, Mira and Zoey), Lazzareschi also offers male performers resembling the Saja Boys (the rival group in the film) that teach kids breakdancing.

“The whole dance element made it even better than just hanging out with characters,” says Tzagournis.

Madelynn Wheater, 7, left, and Parker Apel, 7, center, show off their best moves in the dance circle.

The “KPop Demon Hunters” theme continued onto the plates and cake at Parker Apel’s party.

For Katherine Diaz of Torrance, the “KPop Demon Hunters” craze has been a welcome lifeboat. Diaz manages her 18-year-old daughter Kiara Asiel and several other teenage girls who perform at birthday parties. Diaz’s operation caters to Latino customers as Asiel (an aspiring dancer who plays Rumi) offers bilingual shows. In the wake of the immigration raids last summer, many of their potential patrons refrained from hosting celebrations, dampening their business. Over the last few months, though, demand for the “KPop” characters has generated new opportunities.

“It has been a boom. We have people in our area calling us saying they wanted our ‘KPop’ show because my daughter speaks Spanish,” Diaz says in Spanish.

In addition to birthday parties, Diaz’s team was recently hired to appear at several McDonald’s restaurants around Los Angeles, where hundreds of children and their parents lined up to take photos. In December, the city of Gardena invited them to perform for the community at a Christmas event.

“They specifically requested the ‘KPop’ girls. We said, ‘But it’s Christmas?!’ and they replied, ‘Yes, but kids are dying to see Huntrix [the phonetic name of the musical group in the movie].’ My girls went dressed in their ‘KPop’ outfits, but I made sure to put little Christmas hats on them.”

To avoid legal repercussions, some of these businesses might offer generic versions of popular characters. In 2017, Disney sued a New York company offering “Star Wars” and “Frozen” character knockoffs at birthday parties, but voluntarily dismissed the case a year later after a judge axed most of its trademark claims. The amount of these companies, not only in L.A. but around the world, might also present “practical difficulties” for copyright holders to take action, says Mark Lee, a partner at corporate law firm Rimon PC who has taught entertainment law at USC.

“To give you an example, I had a client who co-wrote a very famous song,” Lee says. “1.2 million people posted that song on YouTube without authorization. You can send what’s called a DMCA Takedown notice, which is like a cease-and-desist letter to YouTube, but you have to do it 1.2 million times.”

At the same time, these small businesses are helping keep the characters popular.

Eliana Fraser, dressed in a Rumi costume, paints 6-year-old Ariya Taylor’s face at a party for Parker Apel, right.

Both Lazzareschi and Diaz have more “KPop Demon Hunters”-inspired events coming up, but Tzagournis believes the peak of the fad has already passed — at least for now. “I feel like this might be very short-lived, which would differ from ‘Frozen’ and the Disney movies,” Tzagournis says. “The kids are kind of over the ‘KPop’ thing now, but the sequels are probably going to reel them back in.”

A new “KPop Demon Hunters” movie is already in the works.

Designers Jeanine Hattas Wilson and Julie Kennedy’s magical transformation of a 4-foot-by-4-foot storage closet at this year’s Pasadena Showcase House of Design almost feels like a metaphor for design showcases themselves: not quite real, but pure fantasy.

“It was inspired by our dad, who used to read to us in Woodstock, Ill.,” Wilson says of their immersive storybook escape, which features a delightful hand-painted mural on the walls and tiny lanterns that, when touched, offer a narrated fairy tale. “We wanted to create a special, intimate space for kids.”

Showhouses are always extravagant, and this year’s event takes place inside the 8,000-square-foot former home of Clara Baldwin Stocker, daughter of land investor and racehorse breeder Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin. Like her father, Stocker was known for her colorful personality and love of lavish things, including parties that lasted for days. (Baldwin Stocker’s 1929 obituary noted that out of her $10-million estate, about $1.5 million was jewelry, “the collection and wearing of which was her hobby.”)

Many of the 30 revamped interior and exterior spaces in the 1907 shingle-style home include details Baldwin Stocker would have loved. The Midnight Garden Dining Room by the House of Pontovi, for example, has an Italian Murano glass chandelier, feminine Art Deco-style swivel chairs with flapper-style fringe and a gold-leaf ceiling that has replaced Calico Corners fabric. The Entertainment Room by Studio Joshua features statement lighting by Los Angeles designer Jason Koharik, an 11 Ravens custom billiards table and a Champagne cooler built into the marble bar.

And the Bloom Lounge by the Art of Room Design is so large that it can accommodate several different seating areas, a game table and a hidden liquor cabinet — another nod to Baldwin Stocker, who was also known as “the Diamond Princess.”

It’s hard to decide what stands out more at the Baldwin Oaks Estate in Arcadia: the layered interiors that look ready for a shelter magazine, or the smaller spaces, like the closets, mudroom and hidden powder rooms that have been transformed into something special.

Here are a few examples of what to expect at the event, which supports youth music programs throughout Los Angeles County.

The Enchanted Room by Hattas Studios

Identical twins Hattas Wilson and Kennedy of Hattas Studios transformed a small 4-by-4-foot storage closet into a magical forest with their hand-painted mural depicting characters from stories like “Cinderella,” “The Little Mermaid” and “The Frog Prince.” A young Clara Baldwin appears with her dog, Lucky. You can touch the tiny lanterns to hear a story in each scene or simply curl up in the soft green fuzzy chair, close the velvet curtains and let your imagination wander.

Laundry and Craft Room by Arterberry Cooke Architecture

Architect Barrett Cooke turned laundry into a pleasure in this beautiful room, which doubles as a craft room outfitted with new rose-colored cabinets, playful circular Fireclay Tile, quartzite countertops and stunning views of the San Gabriel Mountains. “I straddled making it utilitarian with how beautiful it can be,” Cooke said of the local artists represented, including ceramics by Jen King, stained glass by Molly Miller, oil paintings by Lareina Holsopple and a print by local artist and Jungalow designer Justina Blakeney. “The art ties it all together.”

The vault in the Family Parlor Room by Jamie Loren Home

The family room is the only space with a television, but with a mah-jongg table, the TV hardly seems necessary. “We wanted to create a room where the family can congregate,” said designer Jamie Loren, describing the cozy parlor painted in the color Viridian Odyssey by Dunn-Edwards Paints. She also turned what used to be a gun closet into a “vault” filled with family heirlooms, including a typewriter, perfume, photos, jewelry and a flask. “This is an ode to Clara,” she said.

Powder Room by Rebecca J. Hansen Design Studio

Details make all the difference in the small powder room by Rebecca J. Hansen, who explains that both the room and the nearby vestibule are focused on mixing patterns while keeping a consistent color palette. Hansen chose patterned terra-cotta tile from Foothill Tile & Stone Co. in Pasadena for the walls, and just outside, she used wallpaper from House of Hackney with mythical animals. Brass hardware from Corston Architectural Detail, chalk pastels and bold wood trim painted a marigold color brought everything together. “It feels like I’m in a castle in England,” she said.

The second floor landing by Blue Brick Design

Designer Lara Hovanessian has transformed the foyer walls of both the first and second floors into a striking display for local artists Blakeney, Susanna Speirs Ali and Lareina Holsopple. The spaces feature the newly released Huntington Collection wall covering by Morris & Co. in the iconic Strawberry Thief motif, pink ceilings and Alberto Giacometti-style lighting from Visual Comfort.

The Mudroom by Gex Designs

Inspired by the shingles of the 1907 home, Noelle Gex Djokovich, known for last year’s playful flower-cutting room, has reimagined this space with custom cabinets, patterned floors and charming details such as a dog bed, a Lewis & Wood fabric skirt and a rag rug from Nickey Kehoe. “Adding layers to a small room makes you feel good when you come home,” she said.

The Magnolia Room by Cordrey Collection

Designer Steven Cordrey says the Magnolia wallpaper reflects his Southern roots and the Phillip Jeffries grasscloth on the walls is practical (“It’s easy to clean,” Cordrey says). He also likes to bring the outdoors in, pointing to the views of the estate’s grand oaks and pool from the second-floor bedroom. There’s a hidden touch too: Rock Zehler’s stylish dressing room, inspired by Art Deco and the 1970s, has a secret closet tucked behind a pocket door.