Within the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly upright, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem as powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and partnering. With fine features and intense eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a part, showing his cognitive workflow while execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became fuel to prove he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own choreography. In his view, "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 art.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He also favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
