In the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His carriage is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a simple tee. On stage, dancers can appear like mighty gods, yet often offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is one reason for his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With fine features and intense eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Ascent to the Top
At 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed smoothly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he moved directly into the troupe and was advanced annually, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has loved taking on meaty characters, especially the psychological turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's upcoming starring appearance is in a talk, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer behind-the-scenes perspectives into a dancer's craft. He will walk the crowd through a part, showing his mental process during execution. Even in lighter ballets, the test is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding from a skill perspective," he states.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
What about after a show, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he admits. "But because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, quite often I do feel embarrassed later. After an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
In person, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for good change."
Early Motivations and Artistic Inspirations
Ball's determination originated in youthful experiences. Not excelling in competitions at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he remembers.
An upcoming endeavor is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions 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 wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing inspiration from literature, music, and art.
Close-Up Dance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so near to the audience. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The degree of trust between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple aren’t 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 admits. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s favorite supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, followers can see clips from his dance films and photos that highlight a sculpted form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he states. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on various ways.
Ball characterizes his younger self as "eager for success." Has it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a separate thing to the aspirations you made as a young person," he muses. He probably has about decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
