In the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem as mighty gods, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his popularity for heroic roles and partnering. Possessing fine features and piercing 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 smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved straight into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will walk the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive process while execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Motivations and Artistic Influences
His determination originated in early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next endeavor is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is interesting, but just acting that they’re not a thing 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, music, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He additionally favors presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically matched on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted form. Does he care 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 explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate thing to the dreams you had as a child," he muses. He likely has another ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
