Within the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally upright, his arms defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can appear like powerful deities, yet frequently offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic characters and partnering. With fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his mental workflow while execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Feelings
What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for good change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" This became 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.
An upcoming endeavor is making his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "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 inspiration from books, music, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "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 favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted form. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on various levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
