Biographie
Sirena was raised both in the U.S. and abroad, with her mother, Margaret Irwin-Brandon, a harpsichordist and Baroque Orchestra conductor, and her father, John Irwin, a physicist who spent time as a dropped-out hippie before ultimately joining Stanford University. After attending Northfield Mt. Hermon boarding school, where she developed a passion for theater, she went on to graduate from San Francisco State University with degrees in Theater and International Relations. Following a successful run with a popular San Francisco sketch comedy group, she moved to Los Angeles, where her talent for voices and accents quickly found a place in animation. This path led her to a thriving career as a voice director in animation, mentored by Andrea Romano, earning her an Emmy® nomination in 2021.
As an actress, Sirena originated the role of Lucy in "I Love Lucy® Live On Stage," for which she won Chicago's Broadway World Award for "Best Actress in a Touring Production," among other accolades. The Los Angeles Times praised her performance as "pitch perfect," while the Huffington Post described her Lucy as a "force of nature." She performed in the show for four years, including sold-out engagements in Los Angeles and Chicago and a successful 2013-2014 National Tour. Her other stage credits include the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, the West Coast Premiere of John Patrick Shanley's *Where's My Money*, Peter Hedges' *Imagining Brad*, and various Hollywood theater productions such as the notorious *Bob's Holiday Office Party*.
Additionally, Sirena was the lead performer for San Francisco’s renowned Seemen, a pyrotechnic robotics group affiliated with Survival Research Laboratories (SRL). She has written, directed, and produced multiple short films that have been broadcast and distributed internationally. Her debut short film enjoyed a festival run before being picked up by Hypnotic Films for distribution. Her homage to Dario Argento, *Argentoesque*, won an award at the Made In Italy Film Festival in Castel Di Sangro. Her short *Il Controllore* ("The Ticket Taker") was screened at the "Salon de Refusee" during the Milano Film Festival.
With a keen interest in tools and construction, Sirena hosted the History Channel's *Toolbox* and co-created and wrote the pilot for HGTV’s *Do-It-Herself*, hosted by two handywomen. She has also created and produced several spec pilots, including *Butter Face*, starring Fortune Feimster, available on Funny or Die and Vimeo. In 2015, she directed William Missouri Downs' play *The Exit Interview* for Los Angeles' Buzzworks Theater Company, returning in 2018 to direct Mae West's comedy *Sex*.
