He appeared to be walking on air.
Illuminated by brilliant flashes of a strobe light, dancer Brian McGinnis seemed to stride, leap and run in the air across the stage of Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School.

"I’ve never seen anything like that." "Awesome!" "It’s too cool!"

The teen vernacular had just the right words to describe the reaction of audience members to an appearance by The Parsons Dance Company at the high school May 18.

"I float," teased McGinnis, responding to a "How’d you do that?" query at a meet-the-dancers session following the performance by the New York-based company.

The appearance by the modern dance troupe was sponsored by the school’s Performing Arts Society and facilitated by Douglas Yorke, parent of two R-FH students and chairman emeritus of the board of Parsons Dance Company.

Reaction from the mostly teen audience to the athletic, exuberant and joyous movement of the dancers ranged from oohs and aahs to whoops and cheers of approval.

"We’ve never had a group of young people not respond this way," said associate artistic director Elizabeth Koeppen, "which is why it’s so joyous for us. You love the kids so much and feel their energy."

In addition to McGinnis and Koeppen, the company’s dancers are Mia McSwain, Katarzyna Skarpetowska, Abby Silva, David Reuille, Sumayah McRae, Marty Lawson and Kirsten Irby.

The Performing Arts Society sponsored a performance by the Parsons Dance Company at Rumson-Fair Haven High School last week.

The five dance pieces on the program at R-FH in Rumson offered a sampler of the repertory of works created by David Parsons, founder of The Parsons Dance Company.

Yorke noted that performing at the high school is consistent with the troupe’s commitment to educate future dance audiences.

"The mission of the company is clearly to make dance accessible," he said, "and performing at schools is a big part of making that happen.

"I think it’s important because I think dance is a form of art a lot of people think is esoteric and they don’t get," he explained. "David’s dance speaks to people. It’s not a real complicated language.

"Look at a piece like ‘The Envelope.’ If you didn’t understand it, the movement is interesting, the movement is cool, and the piece is fun."

— Gloria Stravelli