Within the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can appear as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining 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 relished taking on meaty characters, especially the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is as himself, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive process during performance. Yet in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Feelings
What about following a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, 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 Artistic Influences
His tenacity originated in early experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging 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 wants his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He also is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous 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 pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On social media, followers can see videos from his projects and images that highlight a sculpted form. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He likely has another decade of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
