Within the quiet 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. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was advanced annually, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial characters, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a part, showing his cognitive workflow while performance. Even in lighter ballets, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Emotions
What about following a show, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "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."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to prove 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 choreography. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules is compelling, but just acting that they’re not a reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be filled with meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He also favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his projects and photos that showcase a sculpted form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit 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 interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the dreams you made as a young person," he reflects. He probably has about decade of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
