Ellen Sinopoli has created over 100 dances since forming her company 31 years ago. As the resident company at The Egg, the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company remains at the forefront of modern dance, and can be counted on to bring the very best in dance performances to the Capital Region. Each year, this professional company shares its work through showcases, workshops and community outreach – inviting us to appreciate movement and rhythm in new ways.

Last year, COVID rocked this region, and shuttered performance venues, including The Egg. Declines in revenue due to lost ticket sales have been too much for some arts organizations to overcome. Fortunately, the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company is not one of them. The show will go on, with help from the Community Loan Fund.

This month, the Community Loan Fund closed on a loan to the company for $20,500 – enough to cover payroll and operations until money begins to come back into the organization from contracts and performances.

“The COVID pandemic has forced so many arts organizations to rethink and restructure how they create and present their work,” says Ellen Sinopoli. “Fortunately the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company was not forced to lay off any of its dancers during this time.  We have all had to adapt without losing our purpose and mission.  Support from the Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region has and continues to play a vital role in ensuring our survival.  It is a crucial and critical  component to so many businesses like ourselves.”

Over the summer, the company was able to present pieces that ranged from solos, duets and trios. They performed site-specific dances at four outdoor locations, as part of the Troy Night Out festivities. The final performance will be on September 24 and will take place on the front stoops of four private residences on 2nd Street, featuring the live music of classical Indian tabla musician, Devesh Chandra. On October 9, they will perform at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts. Last year, the dance company presented dances to audiences by video. The series was called, “As Close As We Can.”

This season, the company will present, “Within the Quiet,” which originally premiered in 2020, and features Ashley Bathgate performing the music of Jacob Cooper. In it, “the elegant sculpting of the dancers’ bodies fluctuates between shifting forms, soft gatherings, windswept designs and serene stillness. The singular texture of the music continually wraps and releases the dancers.” The company will also premiere “Undertow,” choreographed by company dancer Sara Senecal and commissioned by the company. Undertow makes evident the “looming force of an underlying current. Just below the boiling point.”