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In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.

An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, especially the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's works.

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

His next starring role is as himself, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.

The Mental Game and After the Show Emotions

How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."

Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations

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

The next endeavor is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "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 aims his work to be filled with substance, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and painting.

Intimate Dance and Personal Dynamic

He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"

Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "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 favorite supporter."

Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care 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 protective about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple levels.

Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has about decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."