In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can appear like mighty gods, yet frequently offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. With fine traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial dramatic roles, especially the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, showing his mental process during execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite 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 Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's determination stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "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 aims his work to be filled with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, music, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Personal Partnership
He additionally is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "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 perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their main theater, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat objectifying? 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 viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
