For David Parsons, the artistic director and founder of Parsons Dance, a contemporary dance style is about finding a way of working that continues to produce unexpected results.

His company, founded in 1985, has built a reputation around compelling collaborations and relentless touring. The dancers average 32 weeks a year on the road, including a performance today at the Imperial Theatre. They will present Remember Me , a collaboration with the East Village Opera Company that combines diverse dance styles with arrangements of classic arias that incorporate classic structures and modern rock.

Mr. Parsons has worked with artists as diverse as Dave Matthews, sax man Phil Woods and photographer Annie Leibovitz.

"One of the things that drives collaboration is a real desire to work with someone," Mr. Parsons said in a recent telephone interview. "Working with East Village, working with Phil Woods, those are the kinds of things that enrich you."

Mr. Parsons said that engaging with creative people working in other media forces an artistic evolution.

He said he loves the idea of creative forces feeding off each other. That's what attracted him to East Village's unusual operatic interpretations.

"Our (Parsons Dance) language will change," he said. "It is something I love. I love that collaboration and risk -- and don't get me wrong, it is risky. But what got me about East Village is I felt like their power matched ours and that this would be a great way to reintroduce these great opera pieces to a young audience. I mean today, they are only used in advertising."

Mr. Parsons said what attracts the dancers is the unique opportunity his company offers to have dance evolve not only over time, but from place to place.

"As soon as you set a show down for six or eight performances in a week in one place, it starts to curdle," he said. "We create original work and this is the reason why, because we do work on the road and do constantly change.

"It isn't easy, but it works."

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.