Within the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. On stage, dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet frequently in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. With fine traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was promoted annually, attaining the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty characters, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's next starring role is as himself, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive workflow while performance. Yet in more comedic works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. Following an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," 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 Influences
Ball's determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to prove 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 recalls.
An upcoming challenge is making his own choreography. 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 filled with meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, music, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos 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 relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different reality to the dreams you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
