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 limbs muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for heroic characters and partnering. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his childhood passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's next featured role is as himself, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a performer's art. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his mental workflow during performance. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Game and After the Show 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, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
Ball's tenacity originated in youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
The next challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "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 filled with substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Performance and Private Dynamic
He also is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually matched on stage at their main theater, which might be 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 favorite supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the engagement can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
