Within the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and partnering. With fine traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling substantial characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental workflow during execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Psychological Game and After the Show Feelings
What about after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer previously remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences
His determination originated in youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next endeavor is making his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is compelling, 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 books, music, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He additionally is interested in staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close 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 principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his projects and photos that highlight a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another decade of performing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
