In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can appear like powerful gods, yet often in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his popularity for heroic roles and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Ascent 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 early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty characters, especially the emotional 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 next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his cognitive process during performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Feelings
What about following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could achieve. Reading 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 choreography. 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 wants his work to be filled with substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He also favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his projects and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
