Not-So-Silent Night at the Drive-Up Nativity : Holidays: In a Huntington Beach tradition, the story of Christ is enacted amid the clatter of engines.

The roar of an untuned engine briefly muffled the words of the wise men and seemed to startle a stolid donkey.

But no one seemed to mind at an elaborate drive-through Nativity staged Saturday in the parking lot of a Huntington Beach church. The production, which featured more than 70 actors, three donkeys, two sheep and a cow, drew hundreds of walkers and a line of cars that stretched about three-quarters of a mile at one point.

Officials said more than 1,300 people descended on the First Christian Church of Huntington Beach for the opening-night performance Friday. At least that many were expected to walk or drive through the 11-scene production Saturday before the gates closed about 11 p.m.

The free event, dreamed up in 1969 by a church youth leader in an unusual nod to the holiday season and the commuter age, has since then been joined by scores of similar efforts across the country. But there is nothing like the one in Orange County, according to faithful fans.

Julie Ellis, who lives across the street from the church, said she has been bundling up her nieces against the cool night air and bringing them to the Nativity since they were infants. The older, Stephanie, is now 7.

“I think it’s really wonderful for them,” Ellis said. “It reinforces their feelings about the season and just really gets the holidays going.”

The 10-minute show featured sets that lit up as the cars and walkers approached. The actors, who ranged in age from 9 to 73, then performed brief scenes from the story of the birth of Christ.

The best role, noted volunteer actor Blair Stobnick, 16, was that of Joseph in the third scene, who is visited by an angel while he sleeps. “This is the best Joseph to be,” Stobnick said. “You get to lie in the bed all night.”

There are special challenges involved in staging a production with so many actors and a corral of farm animals, coordinator Matthew Brady said. On the first night, the cow in the manger scene got a little ornery but settled into her part after a few minutes to munch on the church lawn.

The only real glitch Saturday was the late arrival of yet another of the Nativity’s Josephs, Brady said.

“For the first few minutes tonight, Mary had to ride off to Bethlehem by herself,” he said with a laugh.