As Seattle counts down to the holidays, 5th Avenue Theatre special-delivers a musical gift that warms our hearts.

Irving Berlin struck gold with his 1942 Oscar-winning tune "White Christmas," written for the film "Holiday Inn." The song's enduring popularity inspired the 1954 remake of "Holiday Inn" as a movie called (but of course) "White Christmas." Bing Crosby starred in both pictures, sharing the remake with Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen.

Now comes the stage adaptation based on the holiday chestnut. Under the direction of Jamie Rocco and David Armstrong, this feel-good production delivers an abundance of old-fashioned charm. Yes, it's sentimental, the plot is contrived and that old comedy shtick makes you simultaneously smile and cringe. But it's a refreshing change from the hoopla over TomKat's wedding and Britney Spears' pantygate. Best of all, we get to hear all those wonderful Berlin melodies sung live by a talented cast.

For the stage musical, other Berlin tunes have been added to the score, mixing familiar standards with rarely sung numbers. Songs and scenes have been shifted, shortened or deleted, but the plot plays out much the same as the film.

It's winter 1954. Bob Wallace and Phil Davis, a pair of ex-Army buddies from WWII and one of the hottest duos in showbiz, meet up with a sister act, Betty and Judy Haynes. Since the girls are booked at a Vermont inn over the Christmas holidays, Phil tricks Bob into tagging along. The inn just happens to be owned by their former commanding general, who's struggling to make ends meet. To make matters worse, it's 70-plus de-grees with nary a snowflake in sight. So Bob and Phil decide to bring their entire show to Vermont. Partly to save the general's lodge; partly because they're smitten with Betty and Judy.

Michael Gruber stars as Bob. You might remember his terrific turn in 5th Avenue's production of "Singin' in the Rain," when he took on the Gene Kelly role. Well, he takes on the Bing Crosby role in "White Christmas" with equal panache. Although his voice is higher than Crosby's, Gruber croons as beautifully as he dances - from the title tune to the tender "Count Your Blessings."

In a part created for Rosemary Clooney, Christina Saffran Ashford shines vocally as the idealistic Betty. When she runs away from Bob's courtship, her big solo, "Love, You Didn't Do Right By Me" mixes heartache with high camp. Four men dressed all in black fling their bodies Martha Graham-style while Ashford sings her woeful ballad, juxtaposed against Gruber's lovely declaration of love, "How Deep is the Ocean?"

Greg McCormick Allen may not be as wacky as Danny Kaye, but Allen holds his own as Bob's playboy sidekick Phil. The feathers fly when he and Gruber flex their comic clout in a gender-bending rendition of "Sisters." And when Allen pairs up with the delightful Tari Kelly in the Vera-Ellen role of Judy Haynes, the two singing hoofers flash their ballroom chutzpah in "The Best Things Happen When You're Dancing."

On the way to the predictable happy ending, Rocco choreographs some great production numbers. Lead by the dashing Gruber, Act One closes with "Blue Skies" - just a snippet in the film - which pays homage to Fosse with finger-snapping moves and bowler hats. Act Two opens with Allen and Kelly in a sensational tap extravaganza, "I Love a Piano," backed by a line of dancers garbed in black and white to simulate a keyboard.

The train number "Snow" has been turned into an ensemble romp sung by everyone onboard. Anthony Curry and Bobbi Kotula are hilarious as the snoring, forever-plaid couple squeezed into the seat next to Bob and Phil. Later on, Curry also spoofs an angst-ridden stage manager with great glee.

But it's veteran thespian Clayton Corzatte who proves the time-held adage, "There are no small parts." Playing the moseying country handyman Ezekiel, Corzatte draws a round of applause with a single word every time he's onstage.

Everyone wants to get into the act. As the wisecracking housekeeper Martha Watson, a marvelous Carol Swarbrick delivers the show's best lines with comedic brilliance, then belts out "Let Me Sing and I'm Happy" in glorious Merman tradition. So the general's granddaughter Susan, played onstage as a plucky pip-squeak, demands equal time. Sassy and adorable, 10-year-old Keaton Whittaker wraps the audience around her tiny countenance with her own showstopping number.

The stage production also showcases such lesser-known Berlin tunes as "Falling Out of Love Can Be Fun" (from the 1949 Berlin musical "Miss Liberty"), "Let Yourself Go" (borrowed from the 1936 Astaire-Rogers film "Follow the Fleet") and the 1947 tune "Love and the Weather" (written for a movie that was never filmed). Conductor James May leads the splendid orchestra, while set designer Anna Louizos creates greeting-card confections bedecked with Christmas red and Yuletide sparkle. Kudos also to Carrie Robbins for her fashionable line of retro couture.

If you're a devoted fan of the movie, you may lament the changes to favorite scenes. In "We'll Follow the Old Man," the 151st division reunion has been reduced to a trio of ex-GIs, so the General's speech lacks emotional clout. Still, in this time of uncertainty when so many young American servicemen and women are risking their lives needlessly in a controversial war, it's comforting to look back on a time when patriotism actually united our country.

Though I never met Irving Berlin during my theatrical heyday in New York, a friend convinced me to join an annual trek to his East Side home to sing "White Christmas" under his window. Sometimes the great composer would wave to us. And out of sentiment, we continued the tradition even after he died.

So call it sappy, call it schmaltzy - "White Christmas" still brings tears to my eyes, especially when the barn doors swing open and the snow starts to fall in rhythm to the music. Thanks to a secret concoction, 5th Avenue audiences also get their own flurry of snowflakes.

As an evening of nostalgic fluff, "White Christmas" seems impossible to resist. But I must confess, I didn't even try.