Sarah Bernhardt was one of the theater's most admired actresses. She was born in Paris, France, where she became a star and later traveled the world on tour. Bernhardt didn't start out as the best, but she achieved the success she is known for today. She was known for her romantic appearance and melodious voice, her natural acting style and sometimes her stormy attitude. Bernhardt lived quite an eventful life, thanks to her many famous lovers, her fabulous dresses, and her travels performing on stages around the world and even becoming a silent film star. She was what we know today as a "drama queen" in many ways. She wasn't immediately successful, but she became famous. As stated in The Divine Sarah, even Sigmund Freud who saw her in a performance (Theodora by Sardou) said "...I immediately believed everything she said..., it is incredible what postures she can assume and how each limb and articulation act with her.”Sarah Bernhardt was born Henriette Rosine Bernard in 1844 to women named Julie Bernard, who was of Jewish descent and little is known about her father. What is known about her mother is that she was a legendary courtesan and was rarely home, and when she was home there were always rich men around. Sarah was a rebellious child who, when she wasn't sick, did whatever she wanted and threw a lot of tantrums. Her mother wanted Sarah to follow in her footsteps and entertain men for money, the idea made Sarah sick (although she later learned that there is a fine line between acting and prostitution), she told her mother that she would become a nun. Everything changed when he saw Racine's Britannicus at the Comédie Francaise. She intended to attend the Conservatory and in 1860 she did so where she had trained for two years. In 1862, at the age of 18, she made her first debut as a leading lady in Racine's Iphigenia. Sarah often suffered from stage fright and her poor performance received some negative reviews. According to Gold and Fizdale, Francisque Sarcey, the most powerful critic in Paris, said that “[she] is extraordinarily beautiful. He behaves well and pronounces his words with perfect clarity. That's all that can be said at the moment." Her next appearance was in Scribe's Valerie, which went virtually unnoticed, and her third debut in Molière's Les Femmes Savantes was no better..