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In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.

A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, especially the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.

"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" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow while performance. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.

The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Emotions

How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."

Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations

Ball's determination originated in early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.

An upcoming endeavor is creating his own choreography. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is compelling, but just acting 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, music, and art.

Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership

He also favors presenting dance in more intimate 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 perspiring.'"

Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."

Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception

On social media, fans can see clips from his dance films and photos that highlight a sculpted form. Does he mind that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple ways.

Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has about ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."