🔗 Share this article

In the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs defined beneath a plain tee. On stage, ballet dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his demand for heroic characters and partnering. With delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of Robert Pattinson about him.

A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle

Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered minimal teasing for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was advanced each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in Kenneth MacMillan's works.

"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."

His upcoming starring role is as himself, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental workflow during execution. Even in more comedic ballets, the challenge is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he notes.

The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Emotions

What about following a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After Mayerling I'm always like: Wow, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is reflective, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic in general, 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 positive change."

Formative Drivers and Artistic Inspirations

His determination stemmed from early setbacks. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" This became motivation to demonstrate he could succeed. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It changed everything, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.

The next challenge is making his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "Breaking the rules is compelling, but just acting that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from books, music, and painting.

Close-Up Performance and Private Partnership

He additionally favors presenting dance in smaller spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the audience. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"

Ball has made duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their main theater, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."

Regarding Instagram and Bodily Image

On Instagram, followers can see videos from his projects and images that highlight a sculpted physique. Does he care that the engagement 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 relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.

Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it met his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has another decade of dancing left. "I suppose in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."