Do dance company artistic directors need to know their ways around the balance sheets? Absolutely, says the new generation of AD’s. If not, you risk being under the thrall of the business side of the operation. “The infrastructure demands ballets that sell enough tickets to pay the salaries of the staff who sell the ballets. To break that cycle, an artistic director has to have a vision and a strategy. Otherwise, you’re trapped into doing 95 Romeo and Juliet’s to pay for one new work.”