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In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple tee. During performances, dancers can appear as mighty gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing fine traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.

A Seamless Rise to the Top

At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was promoted annually, attaining the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling substantial dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.

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

His next featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will walk the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process while performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.

The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Emotions

How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."

Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations

His tenacity stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.

An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules is compelling, but just pretending that they’re not a reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.

Intimate Performance and Personal Partnership

He also is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"

Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."

On Social Media and Physical Image

On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and photos that highlight a sculpted form. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on various ways.

Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has another ten years of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."