In the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is naturally straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. During performances, dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for princely roles and pas de deux work. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Ascent to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has advanced smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his childhood passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the company and was promoted annually, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished tackling substantial dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."
His next starring appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process while performance. Yet in more comedic works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.
The Mental Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to extract all the juice out of it, and get immersed in the character, quite often I do feel self-conscious later. Following an intense role I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very active in general, but I do have a dark side," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Formative Motivations and Creative Influences
His tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "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 loaded with substance, drawing inspiration from literature, music, and painting.
Intimate Performance and Private Dynamic
He also favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past show. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer 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 usually paired on stage at their home company, which might be 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 Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "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—an object that can be interpreted on multiple ways.
Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a different thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he muses. He likely has about decade of performing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
