Within the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his arms defined beneath a plain tee. During performances, dancers can appear as powerful gods, yet frequently offstage they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for heroic characters and pas de deux work. Possessing fine features and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Top
At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he encountered minimal ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was promoted annually, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on meaty characters, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer intimate insights into a performer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a part, demonstrating his cognitive process during execution. Yet in more comedic ballets, the test is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Feelings
How does he feel following a performance, when he has pulled it off? "It's 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 embarrassed later. After Mayerling I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for good change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
His determination originated in youthful experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was fuel to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging 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 meaning, drawing ideas from literature, compositions, and painting.
Close-Up Performance and Personal Partnership
He additionally is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "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 person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets 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 was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "But I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
Regarding Instagram and Physical Perception
On Instagram, fans can see clips from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic form. Does he care that the response can be somewhat 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 relates it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "desperate for success." Has it met his hopes? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He probably has another ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
