In the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can appear as mighty gods, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With delicate features and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was promoted annually, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional turmoil 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 starring appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive workflow while performance. Even in lighter ballets, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, 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 Creative Influences
His determination stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next endeavor is creating his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is interesting, but just acting that they’re not a thing 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 additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous 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 pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
