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Within 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 plain tee. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his popularity for heroic roles and partnering. With delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.

A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was advanced each year, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.

"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."

His upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow during performance. Yet in lighter works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.

The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings

How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. Following an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for positive change."

Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations

Ball's determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.

The next endeavor is making his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the rules is compelling, but just pretending 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 filled with meaning, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and art.

Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic

He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"

Ball has made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually paired on stage at their home company, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."

Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception

On social media, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.

Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has about decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."