In the hushed atmosphere of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally upright, his arms muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, ballet dancers can appear as powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic characters and partnering. Possessing 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 peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, especially the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, showing his mental workflow during performance. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a performance, when he has succeeded? "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 self-conscious later. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Motivations and Artistic Inspirations
His determination stemmed from youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next endeavor is making his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules 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 filled with substance, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Personal Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past 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 made duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t usually paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps 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 cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Image
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his projects and images that highlight a athletic form. Does he care that the response can be somewhat objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a child," he muses. He probably has about ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
