Within the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and partnering. With delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty characters, especially the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his cognitive workflow during execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" 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 conventions is interesting, 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 loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Dynamic
He also favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and photos that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
