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 upright, his limbs defined beneath a simple tee. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like mighty gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was advanced each year, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, especially the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a part, demonstrating his mental workflow during performance. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However 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 afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Influences
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" 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.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Personal Partnership
He also favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, 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 work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he reflects. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
