I have a friend from overseas who had a "sponsor" while he was a violin student at a major US conservatory. He found that the sponsor was a "support system". He was invited to the sponsor's home for dinner; the sponsor attended all of his concerts, etc. Even after he left the conservatory and went on to his career, he has kept in contact with his sponsor. It may be that some ballet dancers actually enjoy knowing their sponsors. Just because one is wealthy enough to support the arts in this way, does not mean that they are some kind of difficult personality. So I don't know if I would view sponsorship as a problem....it is just another way to raise funds for the arts.