Within the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic characters and partnering. With fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, showing his mental workflow during execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, 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."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in early setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could succeed. 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 challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically paired on stage at their main theater, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed 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 Perception
On social media, followers can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted 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 precious about it," he explains. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
