🔗 Share this article

In the quiet atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is naturally straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a simple white T-shirt. On stage, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet often in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for heroic characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate features and piercing eyes, there's a hint of Robert Pattinson about him.

A Seamless Ascent to the Pinnacle

At 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he encountered little ridicule for his early passion in ballet. Joining the Royal Ballet School at 11, he moved straight into the troupe and was advanced annually, reaching the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished tackling substantial dramatic roles, particularly the psychological angst found in a famed choreographer's works.

"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a mental fatigue."

His next featured appearance is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, showing his mental process during execution. Yet in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest from a skill perspective," he notes.

The Psychological Struggle and After the Show Emotions

What about after a show, when he has succeeded? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the character, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After Mayerling I'm always thinking: God, what must people think?"

In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer once remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."

Formative Drivers and Creative Inspirations

Ball's tenacity originated in early experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "driven!" It was fuel to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.

An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "there's nothing wrong with." "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 substance, drawing inspiration from literature, compositions, and art.

Intimate Performance and Private Partnership

He also 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 pieces with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." They aren’t typically paired 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 notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."

On Social Media and Physical Image

On social media, fans can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic form. Does he mind that the engagement can be a bit focused on appearance? Not really. "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 interpreted on multiple levels.

Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I feel very aware of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you had as a child," he reflects. He likely has another ten years of dancing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."