Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful gods, yet frequently in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for heroic characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted each year, reaching the highest position of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, especially the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
His upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series designed to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, showing his cognitive workflow during performance. Yet in more comedic works, the test is profound. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Psychological Game and After the Show Emotions
How does he feel after a performance, when he has pulled it off? "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, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic usually, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an catalyst for positive change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Influences
Ball's tenacity stemmed from early setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
The next challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the conventions is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He wants his work to be filled with substance, drawing ideas from literature, music, and painting.
Close-Up Dance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has made pieces 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." The couple aren’t usually paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On social media, followers can see clips from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted physique. Does he care 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 seeing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate thing to the dreams you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has about ten years of performing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
