In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can appear as powerful deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a part, showing his mental workflow while performance. Even in more comedic works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became fuel to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "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 substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally is interested in 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 person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces 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 resembled Dirty Dancing." They 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 admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On social media, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He probably has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
