In the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his arms defined beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and partnering. With delicate features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was promoted annually, attaining the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling meaty characters, especially the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will walk the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive process during performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a choreographer previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very 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."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity originated in youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to prove he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "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 wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow lead dancer 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 aren’t typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "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 biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his projects and photos that highlight a athletic physique. Does he care that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you had as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
