Within the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. During performances, dancers can appear as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for princely characters and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was promoted annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's next starring role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his cognitive workflow while performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about following a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. After an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Early Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
His determination stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions is interesting, 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 loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and art.
Intimate Dance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past 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 duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On social media, fans can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted physique. 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 compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has about decade of performing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
