In the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly upright, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for princely characters and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty characters, especially the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next featured role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive process during execution. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel 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 lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," 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 Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" It was motivation 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.
The next endeavor is making his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging 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 inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Dynamic
He also favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets 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 was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his projects and photos that highlight a athletic physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He probably has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
