Within the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his arms defined beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can seem like mighty gods, yet frequently in person they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the troupe and was advanced annually, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial characters, particularly the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his cognitive workflow during performance. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Emotions
How does he feel following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to demonstrate 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 remembers.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the conventions 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 wants his work to be filled with substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic form. Does he mind that the engagement 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 seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate thing to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
