If creativity is an inheritable trait then Esther Freud certainly benefited on that account. The 48-year old British novelist is the great-granddaughter of Sigmund, yes that Sigmund; daughter of the famous painter Lucien Freud (who died last July, age 88); and sister to fashion designer Bella Freud. Esther Freud’s seventh novel, Lucky Break, was published recently to mostly positive reviews.
Before picking up the pen Ms. Freud put on the greasepaint. She studied at the Drama Center London where after two years she was informed that she lacked sufficient talent and was asked to leave. She soldiered on and worked as an actress. It is that experience that Freud draws on as she portrays the ups and more frequent downs of an actor’s life in Lucky Break. The novel follows a group of actors from a sadistic drama school, where “they break them down to build them up,” to their various career paths.
Seven years after drama school Ms. Freud began to write. Her first novel, Hideous Kinky, depicted her itinerant childhood in Morocco with her counterculture mother, and was made into a film starring Kate Winslet as the mom.
I found Lucky Break’s main characters wanting in depth. Freud does however nail the actor’s tough life and conveys the admiration due all those who somehow manage to carry on despite the insecurity and frequent rejection endemic to that profession. In the novel one actor tells another: “There should be a support group – we could start one – Actors Anonymous. It would be so popular. In fact it’s probably why so many actors in L.A. go to AA. Most of them don’t even have a drinking problem. They’re actually looking for tips to give up acting.”
