In the quiet ambiance 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 muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and partnering. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced annually, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next featured role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a role, demonstrating his mental process during execution. Yet in more comedic ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "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. Following Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Inspirations
His determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests 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 flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules is interesting, but just pretending 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 loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He additionally is interested in staging dance in smaller venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically matched on stage at their main theater, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On social media, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a sculpted form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? 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 levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
