In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem as mighty gods, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was advanced each year, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Even in more comedic works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he states.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer previously observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
The next challenge 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 reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Dynamic
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made duets 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." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Image
On social media, followers can see videos from his projects and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he care that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? 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 viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
