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Within the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a plain tee. On stage, dancers can appear like mighty gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for heroic roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.

A Seamless Ascent to the Top

Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.

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

His next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow during performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.

The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions

How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."

Early Drivers and Artistic Inspirations

His tenacity stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.

The next endeavor is creating his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking 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, music, and painting.

Intimate Performance and Personal Partnership

He also favors staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"

Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow principal 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 was like Dirty Dancing." They are not usually paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."

Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a sculpted form. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple ways.

Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a different reality to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."