Within the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is effortlessly upright, his limbs muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem like mighty gods, yet often offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for heroic characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty characters, particularly the emotional 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 starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his mental process during performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Motivations and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in early setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules 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 aims his work to be filled with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "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 partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He likely has another decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
