Within the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can seem as mighty gods, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling substantial characters, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his mental process while performance. Even in lighter works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Influences
His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules 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 filled with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, music, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see videos from his projects and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has about decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
