In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming starring appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a part, showing his mental workflow during performance. Even in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
Ball's tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering 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, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging 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 meaning, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He also favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually paired on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Image
On social media, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the dreams you had as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
