Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet frequently offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial dramatic roles, especially the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental workflow during execution. Even in more comedic works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously 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 pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences
His determination stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next endeavor is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the conventions is compelling, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic
He also 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 realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "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 is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed 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 Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He probably has another decade of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
