Within the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a plain tee. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely roles and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will walk the audience through a part, showing his cognitive process while performance. Yet in more comedic works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Psychological Game 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 squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Inspirations
His determination stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next challenge is making his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the conventions is interesting, but just pretending 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 meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Personal Dynamic
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically paired on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Image
On social media, fans can see videos from his projects and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a different reality to the dreams you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
