Within the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet often offstage they are small. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely characters and partnering. With delicate features and intense eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was promoted annually, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a role, showing his cognitive workflow while performance. Even in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. But a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for good change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the conventions is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Dance and Personal Partnership
He also favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer 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 typically matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps 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 supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a sculpted form. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various levels.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate thing to the dreams you had as a child," he muses. He probably has about decade of performing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
