In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, ballet dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing fine traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on meaty characters, particularly 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 starring appearance is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive workflow while performance. Even in more comedic works, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's determination stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. 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 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 aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging 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 realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He probably has another decade of dancing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
