A dance company known for its high energy performances will not disappoint as they premiere a new work set to the music of Aretha Franklin at the Joyce Theater in Chelsea this week.　

It's hard to be anything but excited moving to the music of Aretha Franklin.

"Sometimes we have to reel it in a little bit because it gets to be too much," said Henry Steele, a dancer at Parsons Dance. "It's very easy to do that because the music is so familiar to everyone. You really get to just jam out to it a little bit."

Parsons Dance Company is premiering choreographer Trey McIntyre’s new work "Eight Women," a celebration of strong women set to the music of the Queen of Soul.

"She is beautiful," said Zoe Anderson, a Parsons dancer. "Between the lyrics and her emotion and what she's evoking is already something that's giving you those chills. Then, you internally start moving, too."

"We were all challenged to embody the essence of a woman, resilience, vulnerability, the strength of a woman, and then try to emulate that through Aretha Franklin's music," Steele said.

It's an exciting season for the Parsons Dance Company and extra special for members Anderson and Steele. Anderson just won the Clive Barnes dance award, often given to a ballet dancer. Plus, the company is paying tribute to another legend we lost last year, one of the foremost modern dance choreographers of all time, Paul Taylor. Steele will perform in Taylor’s masterwork RUNES, the same piece that company founder Dave Parsons performed in the 1980s to rave reviews.

"Parsons has never performed a Paul Taylor piece before, which is a little bit shocking to us. I think it means a lot to everyone to be dancing that piece," said Rebecca Josue, the general manager of Parsons Dance.

Parsons is based in New York, but it's a touring company, which means it spends most of its time year on the road. So it's always special when they come home to perform.

"We can travel pretty much anywhere and speak to our audience. It's completely accessible, and the dancers are at the top of their game. They are some of the top-notch dancers you'll see in New York City," Josue said. "To come home and to have our home audience see us at the Joyce Theater is, you know, we leave the highlight of Parsons dance and our year every year."

Parsons' spring season is at the Joyce theater through May 26.