In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial dramatic roles, especially the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's next starring appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's art. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his mental workflow while execution. Yet in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
What about after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in early setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking 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 additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a child," he reflects. He probably has about ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
