In the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can appear like powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his early interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Psychological Game and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze 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: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "kind 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 pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the conventions is compelling, but just acting 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 filled with substance, drawing inspiration from books, music, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He also favors presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On social media, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic form. 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 precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various levels.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a young person," he reflects. He likely has about ten years of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
