In the hushed ambiance of a lounge near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, ballet dancers can seem as powerful deities, yet often in person they are small. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely characters and partnering. With fine features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was advanced annually, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a part, showing his mental workflow during execution. Even in more comedic ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Artistic Influences
Ball's determination stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the conventions 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 wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, music, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He additionally favors staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit 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 viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball describes his younger self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He likely has another ten years of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
