Exit12 Dance Company

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Exit12 Dance Company

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Led by Roman Baca, USMC veteran and artist, EXIT12 performs works that inspire conversations about the world we live in, facilitates veteran and civilian movement workshops, and lectures to educate audiences on the connections between war and society.

10/07/2026

I deployed to Fallujah, Iraq, with the Marines in 2005 and 2006. When I came home, I thought I was doing fine. The people closest to me let me know I was angry and closed off.

My wife, Lisa, sat down with me and asked me “if you could do anything, what would you do?” I told her I wanted to start a dance company. Before the Marines, I was a professional ballet dancer, and I wanted to go back to the arts.

In 2007, we started Exit12. I went back to the studio and began making dances about my service, as a way to explore experiences I couldn’t quite put into words.
That was the beginning: one Marine, trying to find his way back to himself and those around him.

Photos 1-2: Roman; 3: Rachel Neville NYC Dance Photography ; 4: Brendan Bannon Brendan Bannon

09/30/2026

Last week we performed at the Montclair Art Museum for the closing celebration of the Veterans Resilience Arts Trail, a month-long effort to raise awareness of Veteran su***de, build resilience, and foster connection.

Some of our workshop participants joined us on stage to share snippets from our sessions, and the company performed pieces from our repertoire. The arts give military communities a way to process what we carry and connect with each other. Community is key.

Thank you to the East Orange VA and everyone who came out. If you know a Veteran looking for connection, encourage them to try the arts. Dance is our thing, but visual art, music, and writing are all ways to express yourself and build community.

If you are having a difficult time, the Veterans Crisis Line is available 24/7: dial 988, then press 1.
***deprevention

09/25/2026

Have you heard?! Exit12 will be in residence at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College this November as part of the CUNY Dance Initiative!

In honor of Veterans Day, join us for Stories of War, an evening of dance and spoken word created with Exit12 artists and John Jay College’s veteran and military-connected community.

Through personal stories and powerful choreography, Stories of War explores service, sacrifice, resilience, and return, and honors those who have worn the uniform. It’s a celebration of how the arts can spark dialogue, build empathy, and help us heal.

Exit12 was co-founded in 2007 by U.S. Marine Corps Iraq War veteran Román Baca and his wife, ballet dancer Lisa Fitzgerald. It began as a way for Román to process his own return from war, and has grown into nearly two decades of sharing military stories through dance.

Thursday, November 12 Doors 6:30 PM | Show 7:00 PM Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College 524 West 59th Street (between 10th & 11th Aves), NYC Stay after the show for an audience talkback.
Tickets: $30 general admission | $5 for veterans and students.  Link in bio

Exit12’s residency and performance at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College is part of the CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI).
Photo: Jacob Carll | Music Director & Pianist

09/22/2026

This Wednesday we are performing at the Montclair Art Museum in Montclair, NJ!

Wednesday, September 23
5:30 PM - 8 PM

Join us for the culminating celebration of the month‑long Veterans Resilience Arts Trail, dedicated to promoting awareness of Veteran su***de, inspiring hope, building resilience, and fostering connection. Throughout September, Veterans have created powerful works of art across a variety of mediums. This final event honors their creativity, showcases their art, and features special performances by the Exit12 Dance Company, the MHA Mental Health Players, and our very own Veteran guitar group. Come connect, experience the art, and leave inspired.

Tickets are free. Reservations required.
05:30 PM - 08:30 PM
Art Exhibit

06:00 PM
Welcome

06:20 PM
Frontline Paper
(formerly known as Combat Paper NJ)

06:30 PM
NJ Mental Health Players

06:45 PM
VA NJHCS Guitar Players

07:00 PM
Exit12 Dance Company

Details can be found in our story or here:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/exit12-dance-company-veterans-resilience-arts-exhibit-tickets-1996294663076

Photo: Jacob Carll | Music Director & Pianist of “Any Other Friday” by Taylor Gordon⭐️dancer, creator, educator

09/17/2026

This is your mid-morning check in. Pause for a moment to breathe with AD Román Baca and take a few grounding breaths. It’s easy to get caught up in the workflow of September so here’s your reminder to take each day as it comes and ground yourself in your body. Taking a moment of stillness offers a chance to get out of autopilot and back into your own body, even if just for a few breaths.

Footage from our performance for the Bush Stand-To-Leadership Program Alumni Convening held at Amazon Headquarters in DC.

Audio transcript:
So if you’re comfortable, just close your eyes. If you’re comfortable.
I want you to put one hand on your heart and one hand on your belly.
And together we are just going to breathe.
Take a deep breath in.
Blow out of your mouth.
Another deep breath through the nose.
Blow it out.
One last deep breath through the nose.
And blow it out.

09/11/2026

Twenty-five years. We still remember.

Twelve years after 9/11, I was at the New York Fire Academy on a veterans service project, the training ground where new recruits learn to be the first ones into a burning building.

During a lull, I found a set of pull-up bars and did a few reps before I realized what they were made of: twisted steel remnants of the World Trade Center.

Something twisted, burnt, and broken, turned into something that trains the next generation of helpers.

I joined the military in 2000 because I wanted to help people. Over the years, in and out of uniform, I’ve worked alongside men and women who joined for that same reason. I’ve met that same instinct outside the military too, in family members, civilians, artists, people who never wore a uniform at all.

When I think back on that day, the towers, the smoke, the lives lost, what stays with me isn’t only the horror. It’s how many people ran toward it. Not just first responders. Neighbors. Strangers. People who decided, in that moment, to help.

That instinct is what I hope to carry, in the studio and out of it. Not every act of help looks like running into a burning building. Sometimes it looks like showing up for someone who’s carrying a broken chapter of their own, and staying until they find their way through it.

Meeting the world’s hardest moments with the energy to help, instead of just to react, is a difficult thing to do. But it’s how we build a better world, and how we honor the people we lost.

We never forget. We keep helping.

09/08/2026

The work we perform conveys some really heavy stuff. We’re so fortunate to collaborate with artists who bring such care and depth to telling these stories while still keeping moments of light and joy in rehearsal.

On September 23rd, join us as part of the culminating celebration of the month‑long Veterans Resilience Arts Trail at Montclair Art Museum. It will be an evening of connection for veterans and their families through art across all mediums. Event information can be found in our bio.

Photos: Brendan Bannon

09/01/2026

We have big news! We are one of 48 organizations across the U.S. that were awarded a Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant, part of the Creative Forces®: NEA Military Healing Arts Network.

This grant will support a workshop and performance series in Washington, DC in partnership with our friends over at ASAP addressing the experiences, challenges, and strengths of our military communities through the arts.

National Endowment f/t Arts Creative Forces Mid-America Arts Alliance

To learn more about Creative Forces go to arts.gov/CreativeForces or find the link in our story highlights above.

Photo credits in order: katy weske Frank Morales Brendan Bannon

06/17/2026

Our 2025-2026 season was one for the books! We toured to Montana, Arizona, New Mexico, and DC along with performances in Beacon, NY and throughout NYC closing with our fourth annual Stories of War with the Intrepid Museum. We have so many wonderful photos from that performance we had trouble deciding which ones to share first.

Photos 1-11: katy weske
12: Brendan Bannon
13-16: Frank Morales
17-18: Dave de la Fuente

Address

139 Main Street
Beacon, NY
12508

Website

http://www.exit12danceco.org/

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