Born: South Carolina, USA

Trained: Kirov Academy of Ballet, Washington DC

Joined: 2006; Principal, 2015

Awards: Gold medal, Varna International Ballet Competition, 2006; Gold medal, Youth American Grand Prix, 2006; Gold medal, Korea International Ballet Competition, 2005.

Guest performances: In 2014 Mathias was invited by Tamaro Rojo to dance the role of the Prince in Wayne Eagling’s Nutcracker with English National Ballet. In 2018 Mathias performed with Star Dancers Ballet in the annual NHK gala in Tokyo, Japan alongside Miayako Yoshida. Later that year, Iain Webb invited Mathias to perform with Sarasota Ballet where he danced the main role in Sir Frederick Ashton’s Rhapsody.

Created roles: Sky in Juanjo Arqués’ Ignite; Ariel in David Bintley’s TheTempest and the solo male in Jessica Lang’s Lyric Pieces.

Most important role: The Prince in Cinderella, as it was my first Principal role in a full-length ballet.

Favourite one-act ballet:Carmina burana – it’s simply the best music ever written and David Bintley’s choreography is divine.

Off-stage: I’m married to former dancer Laura-Jane Gibson; together we have the perfect little boy, Henry James.

REPERTORY INCLUDES

Carlos Acosta: Don Quixote (Basilio)
Frederick Ashton: The Dream (Puck) and La Fille mal gardée (Colas, Alain)
George Balanchine: Apollo (Title role), Slaughter on Tenth Avenue (Gangster), Theme and Variations (Principal male) and Tchaikovsky pas de duex
David Bintley: The Prince of the Pagodas (Salamander Prince), Cinderella (Prince), Aladdin (Title role), Far from the Madding Crowd (Gabriel Oak), 'Still Life' at the Penguin Café (Brazilian Woolly Monkey), Cyrano (Cadet), Edward II (Fool), Carmina burana (Second Seminarian), Take Five ('Flying Solo'), The Dance House, Sylvia (Magog), E=mc² ('Celeritas²'), Faster, The Shakespeare Suite (Hamlet), The Tempest (Ariel), Beauty and the Beast (Beast)
David Bintley and Galina Samsova's production of Giselle (Albrecht and 'Peasant pas de deux')
Kim Brandstrup: Pulcinella
John Cranko: Card Game (Joker, Ten of Clubs, Three of Hearts), The Taming of the Shrew (Lucentio, Hortensio)
Mikhail Fokine: Petrushka (Stable Boy) and The Firebird
Oliver Hindle: The Four Seasons ('Autumn')
Kit Holder: Small Worlds and Quatrain
Jessica Lang: Lyric Pieces
Kenneth MacMillan: Romeo and Juliet (Romeo and Mercutio) and Concerto (First Movement)
Hans van Manen: 5 Tangos (Principal male), Grosse Fuge
Twyla Tharp: Nine Sinatra Songs ('Forget Domani') and In the Upper Room
Peter Wright's productions of Coppélia (Franz), The Nutcracker (Prince), The Sleeping Beauty (Prince Florimund, Bluebird) and Peter Wright and Galina Samsova's production of Swan Lake (Prince Seigfried,Benno)

Header image: Clothing and styling generously supplied by UK dancewear specialists Dans-ez