In Japan, ballet dancers are underpaid. An article in Japan Times in 2012 reported that the salary of a 41-year-old ballet dancer in a major Japanese ballet troupe was 2 million JPY per year. She will get no pension after retirement, which is paid in some countries.
This may sound a little weird, professional ballet dancers in Japan pay to dance professionally. They have a ticket quota for performances, and dancers in some troupes have to pay the troups some money each month.
Hence, talented ballet dancers go overseas for job opotunity.
As a ballet teacher, I wanted children who want to become professionals to become ballet dancers in Japan without having to worry about their future.