Ballet Luminary Matthew Ball on Grueling Parts and Social Media Attention: 'I Don't Feel Protective About My Body'

In the quiet ambiance of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball orders a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly upright, his arms muscular beneath a plain white T-shirt. During performances, ballet dancers can seem as mighty deities, yet frequently offstage they are petite. Not so Ball, whose tall stature is part of his popularity for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing fine features and intense eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.

A Seamless Ascent to the Top

At 31, Ball is enjoying the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Raised in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Joining the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced annually, attaining the highest position of lead dancer in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, particularly the psychological turmoil found in a famed choreographer's works.

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

Ball's upcoming featured role is in a talk, in an "Evening With" series aiming to offer intimate insights into a dancer's craft. He will walk the audience through a role, demonstrating his cognitive workflow while performance. Even in lighter ballets, the challenge is significant. "A classic ballet is one of the most demanding technically," he states.

The Mental Game and After the Show Feelings

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 character, frequently I do feel self-conscious afterwards. After an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"

Offstage, Ball is reflective, polite, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously observed on a "kind of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I kind of enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an catalyst for positive change."

Formative Drivers and Creative Influences

Ball's determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in competitions at school made him "driven!" This became 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 recalls.

An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the conventions is compelling, but just pretending 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 substance, drawing inspiration from literature, music, and painting.

Intimate Dance and Personal Partnership

He also favors presenting dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really exciting," he says of a past experience. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"

Ball has created duets with his girlfriend, fellow principal 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." The couple are not usually paired on stage at their home company, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always hunky dory," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."

On Social Media and Bodily Image

On Instagram, fans can see clips from his dance films and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be a bit objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he explains. He compares it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.

Ball characterizes his early self as "desperate for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I am conscious of how life is a separate reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he reflects. He likely has about ten years of performing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."