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Within the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.

An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle

Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted annually, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.

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

Ball's upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow while execution. Yet in lighter works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.

The Psychological Game and After the Show Feelings

How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."

Formative Motivations and Artistic Inspirations

His determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to demonstrate 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 recalls.

An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the rules is compelling, 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 loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, music, and painting.

Close-Up Dance and Personal Dynamic

He additionally favors presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"

Ball has made pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."

Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the response can be a bit objectifying? 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—an object that can be interpreted on multiple levels.

Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you had as a young person," he muses. He probably has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."