Within the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can seem as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate traits and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. 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 troupe and was advanced annually, attaining the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on meaty dramatic roles, especially the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His upcoming starring appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will walk the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive workflow during execution. Yet in lighter ballets, the challenge is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he states.
The Psychological Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he admits. "However because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker once observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I am very active in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is making his own dance works. For Ball, "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 wants his work to be loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from books, music, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in smaller venues. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past 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 created pieces with his girlfriend, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is evident. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically paired on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Physical Image
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his projects and images that showcase a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a child," he muses. He probably has another decade of performing left. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
