In the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. 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 demand for princely characters and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, particularly the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a part, showing his cognitive workflow while performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels 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 embarrassed afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
The next challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the conventions is interesting, but just acting 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 filled with meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Dynamic
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous 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 duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "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."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He likely has another decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
