The stage show
Landfill of Memories
An autobiographical performance about hoarding and our relationship to trauma, grief and death. Expect storytelling, spontaneous shredding, and letting go. Once the material is gone from her life, the show can never be seen again.
It all began when…
“I had a breakdown. Isn't that how all the great comedies start?!”
During lockdown, Susanna spent too much time by herself — face to face with years of possessions she never looked at, but hid from strangers, and knew exactly what was in each box. When her Dad and Sister died, eighteen months apart, the hoarding grew to astronomical levels.
The things she kept
- newspapers
- birthday cards
- letters from prisoners
- McFly posters
- gig tickets
- theatre programmes
- a rock from an ex-boyfriend
- keys to unknown doors
Hoarding usually begins at a young age — not having many belongings as a child, seeing parents do the same — and increases after a trauma.
What to expect
Originally a three hour durational performance — part autobiography, part ritual. Susanna works through the real contents of her hoard live, shredding each item once its story has been told. Expect storytelling, singing, comedy, dancing, jogging and the gentle devastation of watching a memory leave for good. Once the material is gone from her life, the show can never be seen again.
- Storytelling
- Spontaneous shredding
- Singing
- Comedy
- Dancing
- Jogging
What audiences say
- “Susanna was amazing!”
- “Susanna's shredding work was so thoughtful, delicate & funny!”
- “Susanna Amato was a highlight of the night!”
- “Susanna was so thoughtful, delicate and funny.”
The new concept
The Infinite Shelf
Susanna's evolving work — making space for conversations about grief, memory, hoarding behaviours, and the things we keep (or can't). A shelf with no end, where every object has a story and every story asks to be witnessed.
Originally presented as a durational performance lasting three hours, commissioned as part of Emergency StopGap by Word of Warning.
The maker
Susanna Amato
Susanna Amato is an actor, clown and theatre maker based in Manchester. Through Landfill of Memories and The Infinite Shelf, she builds work that destigmatises hoarding behaviours — one memory at a time — holding space for grief, the things we keep, and the practice of letting go.
Visit susannaamato.comGallery
Credits & support
Commissioned as part of Emergency StopGap by Word of Warning.
Supported by HOME and the Pleasance Theatre Trust.
Podcast supported by Audio Always via Manchester Amplified.
Producer: Carlie Foster. Composer: Caitlin LM.
As part of the fundraiser, Susanna swam 30km in 30 days for £3,000 of match-funding; a ludicrous challenge for a show about letting go.