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In the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like mighty gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely roles and partnering. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.

A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty characters, 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."

His next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental 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 Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings

What about following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is reflective, 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 active in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."

Early Motivations and Creative Influences

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

The next challenge is making his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the rules is interesting, but just acting 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 filled with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, music, and painting.

Intimate Dance and Private Partnership

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

Ball has made duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not usually matched on stage at their main theater, which might be 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 biggest cheerleader."

Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted form. Does he care that the response can be somewhat objectifying? 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 viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.

Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a different reality to the aspirations you made as a child," he muses. He probably has another decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."