In the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can appear as mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's art. He will walk the audience through a role, showing his mental workflow during execution. Yet in lighter works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Emotions
How does he feel following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice 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?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active 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 catalyst for positive change."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became fuel to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next endeavor is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions is interesting, but just acting 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 loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," 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 healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. 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 precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you had as a young person," he muses. He likely has about decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
