Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. The dancer's carriage is naturally upright, his limbs muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can appear as mighty gods, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is one reason for his demand for heroic characters and partnering. With fine traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was promoted each year, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next featured role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will guide the audience through a role, showing his mental process 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's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a choreographer previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very energetic in general, 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."
Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences
His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is making his own choreography. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is compelling, 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 substance, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Personal Partnership
He additionally is interested in staging dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created pieces with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually matched on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has about ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
