In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was advanced annually, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"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 "Evening With" event designed to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process while execution. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Game and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking the conventions is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually paired 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. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his dance films and photos 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 protective about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has about ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
