Within the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can appear as powerful gods, yet often offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, particularly the psychological turmoil 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 appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive workflow while execution. Even in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, 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 good change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from early 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 "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 aims his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "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 duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic form. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate reality to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
