Character guide
Miss Adelaide
from Guys and Dolls
Miss Adelaide is the warm, exasperated nightclub performer of Guys and Dolls, Frank Loesser's 1950 musical, whose long engagement to gambler Nathan Detroit provides much of the show's comic heart.
- Show
- Guys and Dolls
- Broadway premiere
- 1950
- Role
- Supporting
- Music by
- Frank Loesser
Miss Adelaide on stage vs screen
Broadway compared with the 1955 film
Miss Adelaide is the one lead who went straight from Broadway to the screen: Vivian Blaine, who originated her in 1950, reprised the role in the 1955 film opposite Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, and Jean Simmons. The movie did swap out one of her signature numbers, though. A Bushel and a Peck was cut, and Frank Loesser wrote her a new song, Pet Me, Poppa. He also wrote a new song named after her for Sinatra's Nathan Detroit, Adelaide.
Who is Miss Adelaide?
Adelaide performs at the Hot Box nightclub and has been engaged to Nathan Detroit for years, a delay that has become a running joke and a source of genuine frustration for her. She wants respectability and a wedding, while Nathan keeps getting distracted by his ongoing floating craps game.
Her comic frustration is played for laughs, but there is real feeling underneath it, and her devotion to Nathan despite his flaws is part of what makes their relationship land as sweet rather than simply comic.
Miss Adelaide's role in Guys and Dolls
Miss Adelaide is a supporting role, though a showy and beloved one, built for a performer with strong comic timing, distinctive vocal character, and the ability to sell both broad comedy and real vulnerability. She anchors several of the show's biggest laugh lines and musical highlights.
Audiences love Adelaide because she feels like an underdog rooting for her own happy ending, funny and a little self-aware about her own predicament, which makes her one of the most quotable and rewarding supporting roles in the musical theatre canon.
Miss Adelaide: frequently asked questions
What show is Miss Adelaide from?
Miss Adelaide appears in Guys and Dolls, the 1950 musical by Frank Loesser.
Is Miss Adelaide a lead or supporting role?
She is a supporting role, though one of the show's most prominent and popular parts.
Who is Miss Adelaide engaged to?
She is engaged to Nathan Detroit, whose habit of running a floating craps game keeps delaying their wedding.
Think you can name today's mystery character in eight guesses?
Play today's Character GuesserMore characters from Guys and Dolls
More characters with music by Frank Loesser
- J. Pierrepont Finch (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)
- Rosemary Pilkington (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)
- Bud Frump (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)
- Hedy LaRue (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)
- J.B. Biggley (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)