Dance Luminary Matthew Ball on Demanding Roles and Social Media Scrutiny: 'I'm Not Precious About My Body'

Within the hushed ambiance of a hotel bar near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. His posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms muscular beneath a simple white T-shirt. During performances, dancers can seem like powerful deities, yet frequently in person they are petite. This is not true for Ball, whose height is one reason for his demand for princely characters and pas de deux work. Possessing delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a touch of a brooding actor about him.

An Apparent Rise to the Top

At 31, Ball is enjoying the crest of a career that has advanced seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little teasing for his early passion in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated directly into the troupe and was advanced annually, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has loved taking on substantial dramatic roles, especially the emotional turmoil found in Kenneth MacMillan's ballets.

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

Ball's next featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" event aiming to offer intimate perspectives into a performer's art. He will guide the audience through a part, demonstrating his cognitive workflow during execution. Yet in more comedic ballets, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he notes.

The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings

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

Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, polite, and quick to laugh at himself. Yet a dance maker previously remarked on a "kind of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite active in general, but I do have a dark side," he confesses. "I somewhat enjoy negativity sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for positive change."

Formative Drivers and Artistic Influences

His determination stemmed from early experiences. Not doing well in contests at school made him "vengeful!" It was motivation to demonstrate he could achieve. Discovering the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "pivotal" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.

The next challenge is creating his own dance works. For Ball, "organic movement has value." "Breaking 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 wants his work to be loaded with meaning, drawing ideas from literature, music, and art.

Intimate Dance and Personal Dynamic

He also is interested in presenting dance in smaller venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a previous experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re perspiring.'"

Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a daring lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." They are not typically paired on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "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 Physical Perception

On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a athletic form. Does he care that the engagement can be somewhat focused on appearance? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—something that can be seen on multiple levels.

Ball describes his younger self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his expectations? "I feel very aware of how reality is a separate thing to the dreams you made as a child," he muses. He likely has about ten years of performing ahead. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."