Las Vegas Weekly

October 24, 2008 · 9:06 AM

Five years of watery war for Sirens of TI

By Sarah Feldberg

Don't mess with the Sirens: (clockwise from left) Tara, Lucy, Stacey and Tiffany.

In Greek mythology, the Sirens were a trio of devious seductresses who used enchanting songs to draw sailors close to their island where they would shipwreck on the rocky coast. Pretty crafty, eh? They were beautiful and deadly, a combination that we continue to look for in our women (think Kill Bill, Sin City, Angelina Jolie in Mr. & Mrs. Smith).

In Vegas, the Sirens are a free nightly strip-side show at Treasure Island based around a mock battle of the sexes between a ship full of pirates and a group of scantily clad Sirens. There are sword fights, canon blasts, some impressive acrobatics and a few dance numbers, but by the end of the 18-minute show the ladies inevitably reign over the 1.5 million gallon Sirens’ cove having sent the pirates to the murky depths. Like their Greek inspiration, the women are beautiful, and four times a night, they’re deadly too.

“That’s the best part of the show,” says Stacey Kane, 31, a Siren who has been with the Sirens of TI since its launch in 2003. “We play around with [the pirates] in the beginning, back and forth, and eventually they just cross the line and we sink their ship. It’s pretty fun to be able to defeat the guys every night.” Xena would be so proud.

This weekend marks the Sirens of TI’s fifth anniversary, and what Vegas birthday would be complete without a celeb-hosted bash at a lavish nightclub? On Saturday the Sirens cast will be heading to Christian Audigier The Nightclub where they’ll give a special on land performance with a guest appearance by 90210’s (the new version) AnnaLynne McCord.

After roughly 4,749 performances in front of more than 10 million people these warrior women definitely have cause to celebrate. Over the course of that time the show has gone through some significant changes. What started as a half hour performance is now 18 minutes long and has taken on a more adult edge as Vegas in general has trended away from family-focused entertainment.

“We’ve cut dialogue; we’ve changed choreography. The show that you’ve seen recently I think is the tightest and the best version of the show that we’ve come up with,” Kane says, but there are still some changes to be made. “They’re constantly playing with pyro and trying to come up with bigger and badder effects.”

Kane, a former Raiderette cheerleader, has played a number of roles since joining the cast, and now, on most nights, she plays the part of Sin, the captain of the Sirens. “She’s a very strong figure who all the other Sirens depend on and lean on,” Kane says. “She’s the one who basically had the idea of having the pirates come over and play with us. She takes control of the situation.”

Control, however, can be a little hard to come by for the actors when rehearsing and performing outdoors in weather ranging from summer’s blistering heat to wintery not-exactly-bikini temperatures. Luckily, none of the women have ever fallen in.

“In the winter it’s just really, really cold. It gets really miserable for the guys mainly, because they’re the ones who go in the water. But they definitely get us back and make sure to wring their clothes out on us and splash us when they’re on our ship.”

It’s a small revenge for the perpetual losers, and while Kane says she’d love to flip the story and give the audience a surprise ending once in a while, for now there are no plans to let the pirates sail away victorious. In the Sirens of TI, much like in Vegas in general, it’s the women who come out on top.

Share This