In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely characters and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, particularly the emotional turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming starring appearance is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a part, showing his cognitive process during execution. Yet in more comedic works, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic usually, 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 positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Influences
His tenacity originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions is compelling, but just pretending that they’re not a reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be filled with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Dynamic
He also favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made pieces with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted 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 seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He probably has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
