In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for heroic roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his mental workflow while performance. Yet in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he states.
The Mental Game and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active in general, 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."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became fuel to prove he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next endeavor is making his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions 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 substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Dance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which might be beneficial. "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 favorite supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the dreams you had as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another decade of performing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
