This chapter examines the experience of the growing number of British actress who toured in North America in the mid nineteenth century, focusing on how the specific local circumstances affected dramatic practice and performer reception. It demonstrates the impact of the volatile nature of Anglo-American relations in the aftermath of the American Civil War on those women who crossed the Atlantic in search of theatrical work. Analysing the American reception of British actresses and how it was reported at home unis conflicting attitudes towards gender, nationality and even beauty. The example of Adelaide Neilson, who achieved substantial transatlantic touring success, is also used to explore how gift exchange functioned within nineteenth-century American theatre, and to consider the extent to which celebrity actresses, whose images were widely featured on merchandising products, were complicit in commercial exploitation.