In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, 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 aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during execution. Yet in more comedic works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he states.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. Following an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active usually, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity originated in early experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules 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 aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his dance films and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the response 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 explains. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the dreams you had as a young person," he reflects. He likely has about decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
