The National Ballet of Canada is 50 years old, but for all its critical acclaim, its funding and operations have been scaled back in recent years. The company is starved for money compared to its peers. “Measuring their budgets in Canadian dollars, that of the American Ballet Theatre is $43-million, while that of the San Francisco Ballet is $39 million – each roughly double the National’s paltry annual budget of $15-million.” The Globe & Mail (Canada) 10/31/01