Shawn Rawls is a dance educator and performer and Founder and Artistic Director of Emotions Physical Theatre, a national touring dance company. Through his company, Shawn works with the DEA to create shows and teach residencies high quality dance presentations with anti-drug messages for at-risk kids. During his youth in Cleveland, OH, Shawn studied martial arts and street dance leading him to studies at the Cleveland School of the Arts, dancing with U.D.C. (Urban Dance Collective) and Y.A.R.D (Youth At Risk Dancing), an award-winning program helping youths develop an artistic voice.  These early youth company experiences provided training with Paul Taylor, Pilobolus, and Dayton Contemporary Dance Company.  He received a full scholarship in dance to pursue a BFA in performance and choreography from Belhaven University.  As a performer, Shawn has worked with numerous companies such as Pilobolus, Roxey Ballet, Chicago Dance Crash, Tygo Ballets, Son Kiss'd Hip Hop Contemporary, Ad Deum, Culture Shock, and the Aluminum Show.  He has been commissioned to create work on Dancing Wheels and Roxey Ballet along with numerous choreography commissions for colleges and student training programs.  His work has been seen in NYC 10 Festival, the Houston Fringe Festival, and the Moving Beauty Series.  Shawn has also been teaching dance for over thirteen years at numerous dance schools, training programs and in the Newark, NJ Public School System.