In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear like mighty gods, yet often in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. With delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his early passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the audience through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow while execution. Yet in more comedic works, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Game and After the Show Emotions
How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious 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 choreographer once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to prove he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the rules is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a reality 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, music, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Partnership
He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces 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 audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On social media, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat 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 interpreted on various levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He probably has another decade of performing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
