In the quiet ambiance of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is naturally upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet often in person they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. With delicate features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted each year, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next featured appearance is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event aiming to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a part, showing his cognitive workflow while execution. Even in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next challenge is making his own choreography. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules is compelling, but just acting 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 substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Dance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically 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 biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted physique. 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 ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
