In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. During performances, ballet dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. With fine traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 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. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was promoted each year, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his mental workflow while performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he states.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite 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 instigator for positive change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "vengeful!" This became fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. 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 challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the conventions is interesting, but just pretending 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 filled with substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate 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 made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically 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 cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a different thing to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He probably has another decade of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
