Background
She was raised in Wheaton, Illinois and Bellevue, Washington.
She was raised in Wheaton, Illinois and Bellevue, Washington.
Adams attended the University of Washington, where she studied political science, and the Cornish College of the Arts, where she took theater. She attended the Juilliard School's Drama Division (1985-1989, Group 18) where she graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in 1989.
Adams performed theatre at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. She turned down the chance to work in "Sister Act" with Whoopi Goldberg for the opportunity to work with Arthur Miller onstage.
She then worked along with Steve Martin and Diane Keaton in the sequel to "Father of the Bride", where she received rave reviews from her fellow cast members She went back to the stage and won the 1995 Tony Award for best performance by a featured actress in a play for the Broadway revival of "An Inspector Calls". She also won the Outer Critics Circle Award for best featured actress in a play in the Broadway production of Paul Rudnick's "I Hate Hamlet".
In 1998, she starred in "Happiness" with Philip Seymour Hoffman playing the role of Joy, a sensitive single woman who is struggling with life. She and the cast won many ensemble awards. The next year, Adams got a recurring role on the hit comedy series "Frasier" from 1999 to 2000. She played Dr. Mel Karnofsky, who became Niles Crane's second wife. She also had a role in the film "Mumford".
In 2001, she was in the independent film titled "Songcatcher", with Janet McTeer. She and the cast won a Sundance Special Jury Prize.
In 2007, she appeared in "The Sensation of Sight" and "The Brave One" opposite Jodie Foster, Naveen Andrews, Terrence Howard, and Mary Steenburgen.
She is currently co-starring in the HBO series "Hung" opposite Thomas Jane.
Family Ties (1988–1989)
Relativity (1996–1997)
Frasier (1999–2000)
Hung (2009–2011)
Vital Signs (1990)
Light Sleeper (1992)
I Love Trouble (1994)
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994)
Father of the Bride Part The second (1995)
Happiness (1998)
You've Got Mail (1998)
Music from Another Room (1998)
Mumford (1999)
Songcatcher (2000)
Wonder Boys (2000)
The Anniversary Party (2001)
Orange County (2002)
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Stone Cold (2005)
Last Holiday (2006)
Little Children (2006)
The Sensation of Sight (2006)
The Brave One (2007)
The Wackness (2008)
Wherever You Are (2008)
In Plain Sight (2008)
Alexander the Last (2009)
Restless (2011)