In the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial dramatic roles, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's art. He will walk the crowd through a part, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Yet in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Feelings
What about following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. 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 remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Drivers and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. 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 meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic
He additionally is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On social media, followers can see clips from his projects and photos that showcase 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 states. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
