In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet frequently 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. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, especially the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured role is as himself, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a part, showing his mental process during performance. Even in more comedic works, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Emotions
What about after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences
Ball's determination stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the conventions is compelling, but just pretending that they’re not a reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a sculpted form. Does he care that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
