Within the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is naturally upright, his limbs defined beneath a plain tee. During performances, ballet dancers can appear as mighty deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and partnering. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced smoothly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
Ball's upcoming featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, demonstrating his mental workflow while performance. Yet in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the role, quite often I do feel self-conscious afterwards. Following Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a choreographer previously remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early experiences. Not excelling in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the conventions is compelling, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Dance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in staging dance in smaller venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made pieces with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The degree of faith between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not usually paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. Does he care that the response can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how reality is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He probably has about decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
