Amazon's Garden of Earthly Delights at SXSW Is Delightful Indeed

“The end is nigh!” 

Those words echoed throughout Austin on Friday as Amazon Prime Video’s Good Omens activation kicked off. The words were written on walls, printed on protest signs and shouted from actors throughout the streets, all encouraging festival goers to escape the apocalypse (aka the festival) at the Good Omens Garden of Earthly Delights. 

A group of motorcyclists rode through downtown Austin on Friday with Good Omens branded leather jackets. Among the riders were the four horseman of the apocalypse. This was all before people even entered the activation space. 

[Click or swipe through the photo galleries below]

Amazon Prime Video partnered with CSM Lead Dog to create the Garden of Earthly Delights, an escape from the crazy everyday of the festival. The experience is for freshman show Good Omens, which centers around an angel (Michael Sheen) and demon (David Tennant) partnering up to stop the apocalypse. 

As you walk through the garden gate of the activation, an angel and demon greet you and you are forced to go right, to the demon side, or left, to the angel side. The activation is packed with activities, all themed around the show. 

On the demon side, there’s a Hellhound Puppy Pen, a Bentley, wings and frito pie, a Snapchat partnered photo op with demon wings, and a hair salon to get a new look.

On the angel side, there’s a recreation of A.Z. Fell & Co. (a bookshop from the show), a sushi station, a Snapchat photo op with angel wings, and a nail salon. 

The two sides collide with a stage of classical musicians playing today’s hits on stringed instruments, who stop playing only when thunder hits.

Once every hour, thunder rolls through the experience, stopping everything in its tracks. Characters come out of nowhere and shout “The end is nigh!”—some with signs, some with newspapers. A few angels and demons also make an appearance. 

There’s also a giant tree in the middle of the space. You can have your beer and wine poured from a tap in the tree, and you can pluck an apple that holds a prophecy inside. 

Whether you want your aura read or to play with puppies, the Good Omens Garden of Earthly Delights is a great escape from the craziness of the festival.

The activation is open from March 8-11. Good Omens premieres May 31 on Amazon Prime Video.