Within the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can appear like mighty deities, yet often in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic roles and partnering. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, especially the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will walk the crowd through a part, demonstrating his mental process while performance. Yet in more comedic works, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer previously observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite 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 instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's tenacity stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
The next endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is compelling, but just acting 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 books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually paired 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 biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted form. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
