Ballet BC laid off most of its staff after slow ticket sales left it with a $270,000 funding shortfall. (CBC)

It's not out of the woods yet, but Ballet BC says its financial situation is improving as people snap up tickets for a traditional Christmas favourite.

The Vancouver-based dance company announced last week it had laid off more than 30 staff and dancers after it failed to attract large-enough audiences for its first two productions of the season.

Since the announcement, president Graeme Barrit said things have improved, and the ballet company has sold thousands of tickets to the upcoming production it is sponsoring of The Nutcracker by the Moscow Classical Ballet.

"With our weekend sales we were at almost 5,000 tickets sold. Some wonderful people have stepped forward and bought big blocks of tickets for children in need across the city," he said.

Ballet BC still needs to sell at least 2,000 more tickets to The Nutcracker to break even.

But if the company can get up to the 12,000-ticket mark, it will make money, something the debt-plagued organization desperately needs to do.

In the long-term, the company will need to secure more financial help, after revenues fell $270,000 this season because of lower subscriptions and ticket sales for two recent productions, said Barrit.