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 muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved tackling substantial characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next starring role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a dancer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive workflow during performance. Even in lighter works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a performance, 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 character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 literature, music, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps 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 Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and photos that highlight a sculpted physique. 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 explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how life is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He likely has another decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
