Exit12 Dance Company Statement on NEA Grant Cancellations and the Future of Federal Arts Support

As artists, veterans, and citizens deeply committed to the power of the arts to heal, unite, and transform, Exit12 Dance Company expresses our profound concern over the recent cancellation of National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) grants, the resignation of its dance grant team, and the looming threat of the agency’s dissolution.

The NEA has long been a vital pillar of support for arts organizations across the country—especially those working at the intersection of community, education, and underserved populations. For organizations like Exit12, whose work bridges the civilian and military divide through dance, storytelling, and education, the NEA’s backing has not only validated our mission but has also enabled us to bring meaningful programming to communities often left out of the artistic conversation.

Our artists are veterans, military family members, and civilians—individuals who have lived through war and those who seek to understand it. Together, we create art that wrestles with memory, trauma, service, and reconciliation. In our performances and outreach Exit12 crafts spaces where dialogue and empathy flourish. These are not simply shows; they are bridges.

We know firsthand the impact of artistic engagement on those who have served. Our collaborations with organizations like CreatiVets, Armed Services Arts Partnership, and other military connected musicians, artists, and dancers, showcase how the arts provide veterans with tools to process, express, and share their lived experiences.

This work does not happen in a vacuum. It requires support—both moral and material. The NEA’s role in facilitating access to the arts, funding innovation, and sustaining creative ecosystems cannot be overstated. Its absence would create a devastating gap, not just for large institutions, but for medium-sized, community-rooted companies like ours who use art to serve and uplift.

We are proud to be led by a veteran alongside a team of military connected individuals of whom many are professionally trained artists, and supported by academic research into the intersections and impact of dance and the military. We are a company of artists who understand that the arts are not a luxury. They are essential infrastructure for civic health and national healing.

To dismantle the NEA is to say that the arts do not matter. But we know they do—because we see the transformation in every workshop, every rehearsal, and every performance.

Exit12 Dance Company urges policymakers and the public to recognize the gravity of this moment. We call for renewed support for the NEA, for the reinstatement of its vital teams, and for the affirmation that the arts are a public good worth fighting for.

We will continue to create. We will continue to foster community. We will continue to serve.