UPPING THE ANTE FROM CELINE DION TO AN ADULTS-ONLY CIRQUE, LAS VEGAS SETTING A SEXY NEW PACE.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

LAS VEGAS - It's a new day in Las Vegas, and we're not just referring to the Celine Dion extravaganza at Caesars Palace.

The buzzword in Sin City is adult, with a capital A. Not only are the resort casinos raising the stakes with unique and elaborate entertainment like Dion's show, which is a dazzling combination of the world's most popular female singer with the artistry of Cirque du Soleil, but they want to remind you that - as the latest TV ads for the city go - what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. In other words, come and have the kind of fun you'd only tell your best friend about - if you'd even tell him.

Some of this adult edge is evident when you walk down the Strip, the highway along which the casinos blast their neon come-ons. There will be more reminders soon when New York New York brings a third Cirque du Soleil show to the city this summer. This one, for the over-18 crowd, is being called a ``provocative exhibition of human sensuality.''

And that family-oriented pirate fight in front of Treasure Island will be gone - along with the resort's name. Instead, there will be ``Sirens of TI.'' (TI is the new nickname - Treasure Island remains its official name.) In the new show, sexy girls will fight pirates in what the resort calls a ``sensual modern interpretation'' of the old ``Battle of Buccaneer Bay.''

Changes are apparent inside the clubs and casinos, too. Walk into the restroom of Paris Hotel's Risque, one of the many ``ultra'' lounges with suggestive one-word names proliferating around the city. Notice it's the restroom, which is divided by a translucent wall; designer Heather Kovacs says you can see through the glass if you press up against it.

We didn't try it - we'll take Kovacs' word for it. We can attest, though, that you can see shadows of what's going on on the other side. Look up at the blood-red vaulted ceiling and you'll notice that the wall only goes partially up, which allows sound to travel easily. Private ain't so private, but it does feel a little bit naughty.

``We wanted it to be sexy; we wanted to be a bit risky,'' said Kovacs, whose firm Kovacs and Associates is located in Toluca Lake.

Vegas, on the other hand, may prefer playing the safe house odds, but it's being forced to take increasing risks when it comes to entertainment and luring people to the city. Indian resort casinos are springing up all over the country, which means that gambling is not the attraction it once was in Vegas.

``Fifteen years ago, you could engage in casino gaming in two states, and today some 48 states have some form of gambling close to home,'' noted Erika Brandvik of the Las Vegas News Bureau, the organization behind those suggestive television ads. ``In order to set yourself apart, you need something else.''

Once upon a time, Vegas was the only place you could see certain entertainers, but now Indian casinos - which span the country from Pechanga in Temecula to Foxwoods in Connecticut - are bringing in such headliners as Jay Leno, Bill Cosby and Tony Bennett.

That explains why Caesars gambled on the Dion show. This despite the fact that Park Place Entertainment, which owns Caesars and built the 4,100-seat Colosseum at a cost of some $90 million, doesn't even get a cut of the gate. (The singer is expected to draw sellout crowds for 200 dates for each of the next three years, with tickets priced between $87.50 and $200.) Instead, PPE is counting on the increased business at its gaming tables, restaurants and hotel.

So far the gamble is paying off, according to Robert Stewart, senior vice president of corporate communications for PPE. Since Dion's show began March 25, he said, the average number of daily visitors to Caesars is up 33 percent, the average amount of daily food and beverage revenue is up 35 percent, and average daily gaming volume is up 23 percent. And these figures include nights she didn't perform.

These figures and some other numbers, Stewart said, translate to approximately $200,000 more each day during the weeks Dion performs. If the superstar continues to be that kind of draw, Park Place figures to show a return on its Colosseum investment long before she's sung her last note at Caesars.

Stewart sees no reason not to expect Dion to remain a major attraction. On any given night of the week, he said, there are 90,000 to 100,000 people on the Strip each night who are looking for something to do; so there is a large potential audience out there.

Another reason is the show itself, which includes its own sensual set piece - the bluesy ``(Everything You Do) Seduces Me'' - in which Dion sits back in an oversize chair as shirtless male dancers writhe around her. Die-hard Celine fans - and they are legion - will undoubtedly return, but the show is meant to evolve, tempting others to come back.

On opening night there were 23 set pieces in the show created by Cirque du Soleil veteran Franco Dragone. Little more than two months later, there have already been tweaks - new numbers have been inserted and the order of others has been changed.

And Caesars has other plans for the Colosseum. Early in May, Jerry Seinfeld performed for a couple of nights, and Stewart said other big-name acts will likely be announced soon.

Meanwhile, the new R-rated Cirque show that is opening at New York New York this summer - it'll be called ``Zumanity'' - will not be topless, but both the troupe and the casino are promising more skin. (Rumors have it that they were advertising for a 50-ish drag queen.)

There are already two other Cirque shows running in Vegas - ``O'' at the Bellagio and ``Mystere'' at Treasure Island. But for those who already found eroticism in the French-Canadian circus, in which athletic men and women in tight outfits turn themselves into human pretzels, ``Zumanity'' likely will confirm it.

When you mention the press-release descriptions of ``Sirens of TI,'' publicist Jennifer Michaels giggles a little. But she is quick to point out that the show would ``absolutely be appropriate'' if someone did want to bring their family.

``It's going to be women - they may be in bathing suits at times,'' she said, ``but they're going to do stunts and acrobatics. And there will be terrific music that creates a real energy. Keep in mind that it's on the Las Vegas Strip, and it's going to be a free attraction. So there are lines that you can in no way cross.''

The change in the show only reflects the change that has been going on at TI, which now sees itself as a Caribbean-themed resort, Michaels said. TI had a 25,000-square-foot arcade for kids when it opened in 1993; now it has a 1,200-square-foot area. Many of the pirate icons are gone, too.

Instead, the casino opened a splashy new restaurant called Kahunaville, with island food and exotic drinks. (Themed restaurants and fine dining with the name of some famous chef attached is another trend in Vegas meant to attract visitors.)

Why the change?

``Back in 1993, Las Vegas was perceived to be redesigning itself to be appealing to families, and I think that it failed,'' Michaels said. ``Parents who brought their kids were disappointed because, at the heart of it, Las Vegas was still about an adult destination. So MGM Grand closed its theme park, and you have definitely seen a return in recent years to people focusing on Las Vegas as an adult destination with night life and night clubs and gambling.''

The mantra in Vegas is that 90 percent of the visitors to the city are over 21; so there aren't that many people bringing their kids for the pirate show.

Brandvik acknowledged that Vegas still has the likes of Siegfried and Roy, Wayne Newton and showgirls, but they have to have more - the Cirques, Blue Man Group at the Luxor and Dion, for example - if they are going to keep ahead of the game.

``Truly, it's not just about gaming,'' Brandvik said. ``Gaming is a given. It's everything else that makes Las Vegas interesting, and that's what is going to continue to set us apart from all of the other casinos popping up all over the place. And that is what is going to capture the potential visitors' imaginations.''

Stewart echoed that, pointing out that because of increased competition, it's important for resorts in Vegas to ``take it to the next level and give visitors something no one else can deliver.''

But Las Vegas does have one advantage over gaming resorts - its diversity in entertainment. Or, as Stewart put it, the city ``is not a one-trick pony.''

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(1 -- 3 -- color) Celine Dion's extravagant show at Caesars Palace, ``A New Day,'' is accented with the creative choreography of Cirque du Soleil, top. A special venue, the Colosseum, above, was built just for the show. Also riding the crest of Las Vegas' adults-oriented trend is Risque, right, a sexy club at the Paris hotel and casino.

(4 -- 5) With Las Vegas aiming to attract more adults, even Celine Dion, top, is spicing things up in her Caesars Palace show at the casino's new 4,100-seat Colosseum theater, above.