In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet frequently offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and partnering. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty characters, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's next starring appearance is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his cognitive workflow during performance. Even in lighter ballets, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. Following Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active usually, 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 Drivers and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next endeavor is making his own dance works. 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 wants his work to be loaded with substance, drawing ideas from books, compositions, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not usually paired on stage at their main theater, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his projects and images that highlight a athletic physique. Does he care 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 explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He likely has about ten years of dancing ahead. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
