In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can appear like powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and partnering. Possessing fine traits and intense eyes, there's a hint 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. Raised in Liverpool, he faced minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial characters, particularly the emotional angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His next starring appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's art. He will walk the audience through a role, showing his mental process while execution. Yet in lighter works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Mental Struggle and After the Show Emotions
What about after a performance, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the juice out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I'm quite 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."
Early Drivers and Artistic Influences
Ball's tenacity stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
The next challenge is creating his own choreography. 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 aims his work to be filled with meaning, drawing inspiration from books, music, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He also is interested in staging dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Bodily Image
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, 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 various levels.
Ball characterizes his early self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He likely has another ten years of dancing left. "I suppose in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
