In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His carriage is naturally upright, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem as powerful deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. With fine features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive workflow during execution. Even in lighter works, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel after a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in early setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate 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 remembers.
The next endeavor is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions 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, music, and art.
Intimate Dance and Personal Partnership
He also favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous 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 girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically 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 Physical Perception
On social media, followers can see clips from his projects and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on various levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He likely has another ten years of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
