Within the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic roles and partnering. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, reaching the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on meaty characters, particularly the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's next starring role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental process during performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next challenge is making his own choreography. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 aims his work to be filled with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Personal Dynamic
He also is interested in presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On social media, fans can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? 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 seen on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate thing to the dreams you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has another decade of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
