Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is naturally straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for heroic roles and partnering. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was promoted each year, attaining the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Even in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Drivers and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the conventions is compelling, but just pretending 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 loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He also favors staging dance in smaller 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 realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "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 is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On social media, fans can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has another decade of performing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
