In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for heroic roles and partnering. Possessing delicate features and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very 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 instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the conventions 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 wants his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, music, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually matched on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his projects and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate reality to the dreams 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."
