In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple tee. On stage, ballet dancers can seem as mighty gods, yet frequently offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic roles and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered little ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial characters, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive workflow during performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is profound. "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. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Motivations and Artistic Influences
Ball's tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules 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, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. 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 level 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 are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic form. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you had as a child," he muses. He likely has about ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
