Within the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his arms muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, dancers can seem as mighty gods, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. With delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his early interest 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 tackling meaty dramatic roles, especially the emotional turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's next featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Yet in more comedic works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Emotions
How does he feel after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Early Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
The next endeavor is making his own choreography. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging 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 aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Image
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
