When David Byrne sang "When You Wish Upon a Star" (from "Pinocchio") Wednesday night, his audience could have stepped outside and seen a star or two.

St. Ann's Warehouse in DUMBO is far from the Disney-fied, brightly lit Times Square, making it the perfect place for Mr. Byrne and other performers to take a darker tour of the Disney Songbook according to music impresario Hal Willner.

The songs were familiar, but the renditions eclectic and un-saccharine. Suzanne Vega performed "Cruella De Vil" from "One Hundred and One Dalmations." Gavin Friday gave a mournful, beautiful rendition of "Chim Chim Cheree" from "Mary Poppins."

The performance, which was also the American live premiere of an album recorded 20 years ago, "Stay Awake: Interpretations of Vintage Disney Films," was the centerpiece of St. Ann's Warehouse's annual fund-raising gala.

And in keeping with a gala, the final number was upbeat, prompting hundreds of silly smiles and even some audience participation: It was Sharon Jones singing the "Mickey Mouse Theme."

To St. Ann's supporters, being inside the warehouse, which has been used in so many different configurations for landmark work (most recently, the National Theatre of Scotland's "Black Watch"), is like being inside a fairy tale. In fact, all of DUMBO feels like a fairytale land, where artists have prospered alongside residential and commercial developments.

One of the benevolent forces in this story is the Walentas family. Through their real estate business, Two Trees, and their philanthropy, they have helped make DUMBO, and St. Ann's in particular, a destination.

And the fairy godmother? That's the artistic director of St. Ann's, Susan Feldman.

With warm weather around the corner, there's no better time to visit the waterfront community. St. Ann's will stage "Macbeth" as conceived by Poland's TR Warszawa at the open-air Tobacco Warehouse, across the street from St. Ann's Warehouse, in June.

agordon@nysun.com