In the hushed ambiance of a lounge 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 tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear like powerful deities, yet frequently in person they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for heroic characters and partnering. With fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty dramatic roles, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"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 designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his mental process while execution. Even in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Game and After the Show 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 juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Inspirations
His determination stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is making his own choreography. 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 aims his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? 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 seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He probably has about ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
