🔗 Share this article

Within the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem like mighty deities, yet often offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.

An Apparent Rise to the Top

At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved directly into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling meaty 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 neural fatigue."

Ball's next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer intimate insights into a performer's art. He will walk the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive workflow while execution. Even in lighter works, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.

The Mental Struggle and After the Show Emotions

What about after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. Following an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic 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 catalyst for positive change."

Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations

Ball's tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to prove 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.

An upcoming endeavor is creating his own choreography. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the conventions 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 aims his work to be filled with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, music, and painting.

Intimate Performance and Private Partnership

He also favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"

Ball has made pieces with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."

On Social Media and Physical Perception

On Instagram, fans can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple levels.

Ball describes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a different thing to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has about decade of dancing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."