Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can appear like powerful gods, yet frequently offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely characters and pas de deux work. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next featured role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a part, demonstrating his cognitive workflow during execution. Even in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Feelings
What about following a show, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences
His tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not doing well 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 changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
The next endeavor is creating 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 loaded with substance, drawing ideas from literature, music, and art.
Intimate Performance and Personal Dynamic
He additionally is interested in presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, 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 daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They are not typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted form. Does he care that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has another decade of performing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
