Dates: Thursday, July 30, 2026 – Sunday, August 2, 2026
Sign-ups close at 11:59 PM EST on January 1st, 2026
Location: A luxurious cabin in Ellijay, Georgia, USA (90 minutes outside of Atlanta)
Ticket Price: $750
The cost of the ticket covers lodging for 3 nights, 8 meals (Thursday dinner through Sunday breakfast), light snacks, personalized character sheets, art supplies, access to limited tools and equipment, and general entry into the larp
Number of Participants: 19 (24 total including organizing team and facilitators)
Minimum Age: 21
Due to the presence of alcohol at this larp, all participants must be at least 21 years or older by the start of the game
Schedule
- Check-in opens at 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 30
- Workshops begin at 2 p.m.
- The game begins in media res around 9 p.m.
- The game will end on Saturday, August 1 at around 6–6:30 p.m.
- Out-of-game dinner will be served and the afterparty will begin at 8:00 p.m.
- Players must leave the venue by noon on Sunday, August 2
Venue
Vanitas takes place at a scenic private vacation rental in Ellijay, Georgia, USA, about a 90 minute drive from Atlanta. The exact address will be sent to participants a few months before the event. The nearest airport is Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). You’ll need to arrange your own transport to the venue, but we’ll help you coordinate carpooling with your fellow players.
If there is sufficient interest, we will arrange a bus to transport players from the airport to the venue for an additional charge, but we cannot guarantee that until player interest is gauged.
The cabin is fully air-conditioned, with plenty of creation space if all students decide to remain indoors for the duration of the event. Box fans will also be set up in the outdoor patio for those who wish to create art in nature.
Supplies and Materials
Extensive art supplies and materials will be readily available for players on-site.
However, it would be financially (and literally) unfeasible to provide every tool or material that an artist might want or need, so we will provide a detailed list of what is being provided (such as blank canvases, paint brushes, paints and pencils, clay, various types of fabric, a few everyday objects to break, etc.) and we ask that players bring whatever else they might need. This list will be sent out to participants at least one month before the larp.
We will not be providing any photography equipment or musical instruments. Do not sign up for these Minors if you’re unable to bring your own gear/instruments.
Costuming
The game is set in modern day, so guidance around costuming will be limited. We recommend you dress in whatever styles most immerse you in the character, while keeping in mind that the characters are all 19- to 22-year-old, predominantly affluent students at a prestigious, private art institute.
Photography
One of the facilitators will be playing a photography professor and will take pictures in-character. All of the final artworks/competition submissions will be photographed.
Photos will be sent out to all participants for review after the larp, and we’ll delete any photos of you that you want removed. Participants are also free to take their own photos during the event, but we request that you share all photos from the game with us afterward so they can undergo the same player review process. Photographs of intimate scenes or nudity are prohibited unless explicitly requested by all participants in the scene.
We reserve the right to use photos from this event for promotional purposes for future Secret Garden Studios events.
Sleeping
Most rooms have double- or queen-sized beds, which will be designated to two players to share. Due to the constraints of the venue, it will not be possible to provide any participant their own room.
There are a few single beds within the higher occupancy bunk rooms, if any participants cannot share a bed for logistical, safety, or medical reasons. However, those participants will need to be prepared for less space, quiet, and privacy in exchange for not sharing a bed.
Bedrooms will be considered in-game during the day, and participants may opt for an open/closed door play policy at night. If the door is open, the room is considered in-game, and if it is closed, that room is off-game. We leave this up to the judgment of the players in each room, but we will do our best to pair roommates based on their preferences for in- versus off-game sleeping arrangements.
AI Use at This Larp
Strictly banned. The use of AI for any manner or aspect of artistic creation is strictly prohibited and violations of this policy will result in a ban from all future Secret Garden Studios events.
Accessibility
The site is not wheelchair accessible. There is, however, a bedroom and ensuite bathroom on the first floor, for participants with mobility issues who can climb stairs but find excessive stair-climbing physically arduous or draining. Please communicate in your sign-up form if you require the first-floor accommodation in order to participate comfortably in this larp.
Accessibility will be taken into account and accommodations made wherever possible, so long as accommodations are requested in advance of the larp. This is designed to be a somewhat physically intense larp, so any participants with concerns should communicate those concerns during sign-ups.
Due to the vastness of the grounds and surrounding area, we will implement a communication system to ensure the safety of players who venture into nature to create art, as well as to ensure play for participants who are confined to the cabin. This system will allow players with limited mobility to communicate with co-players outside of the cabin, so that time and energy is not wasted waiting or searching for players who would otherwise be difficult to locate.