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In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain tee. On stage, ballet dancers can appear as powerful gods, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for princely characters and partnering. With fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.

A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.

"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."

Ball's next featured role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will walk the audience through a role, showing his mental process while execution. Yet in more comedic works, the challenge is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.

The Psychological Game and After the Show Emotions

How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."

Formative Motivations and Creative Inspirations

Ball's tenacity stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.

The next challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions is compelling, but just acting that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.

Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic

He additionally is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"

Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."

Regarding Instagram and Physical Image

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.

Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate reality to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He probably has about decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."