NORMAL - As it approaches its seventh season, The Pantagraph's Holiday Spectacular has become nothing less than a firmly ingrained Twin Cities institution.

Right up there with Constitution Trail and Beer Nuts.

You can chalk it up to its lavish outlay of Broadway-worthy spectacle.

Or its generous amassing of top-tier local talent.

Or its combining the sacred with the secular.

Whatever, Holiday Spectacular has become, for many, the crowning seasonal event in town.

For proof, just head to Illinois State University's Braden Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday, when this year's production travels back in time to the 1940s.

The setting is Bloomington-Normal, circa World War II; the theme is about coming together to overcome extraordinary challenges while at the same time living out the timeless values of the season.

With our current economic climate and battles being fought overseas, any parallels between then and now are, as they say, entirely intended.

To warm things up for this year's shows, we've rummaged our way through the preceding half-dozen Spectaculars and come up with enough trivia and data to administer our first, but probably not last, Holiday Spectacular I.Q. Challenge.

We're only challenging you up to a point; the answers are deposited, like presents under the proverbial tree, at the end of the story.

• 1.) Holiday Spectacular goes through fat jolly elves like some of us do quarts of eggnog this time of year. Over its seven-year run, how many Kris Kringles have quivered like bowls full of jelly through the course of the show?

a.) 10; b.) 15; c.) 25; d.) not sure (Donner and Blitzen absconded with the files)

• 2.) The very first Holiday Spectacular in 2002 was supposed to feature which of the following - until the gig was canceled due to lack of sufficient backstage space at the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts (pre-remodeled era)?

a.) a dromedary living near Heyworth; b.) special guest stars the Osmonds; c.) eight maids a-milking and, consequently, eight cows being a-milked); d.) special guest stars, the entire cast of the American Passion Play

• 3.) What Holiday Spectacular-related fact went into the record books of the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts in December 2004?

a.) it became the first major show to be performed in the venue since the remodeling; b.) it became the last major show to be performed in the venue prior to the remodeling; c.) it bumped the previously booked "Christmas with Black Oak Arkansas Reunion Concert" after selling 7,000 times as many tickets; d.) the thunderous applause at the end of each performance caused the foundation to shift three meters to the northwest.

• 4.) Over the course of seven years of severe munchies attacks at Holiday Spectacular rehearsals, it's taken which of the following to keep the attacks at bay:

a.) 4,000 bags of popcorn; b.) hourly U-Haul runs to the Beer Nuts dock; c.) 2,050 hot dogs; d.) all the Burger King's horses and all the Burger King's men

• 5.) In 2006, Holiday Spectacular moved from what space to what space?

a.) BCPA to IWU Westbrook Auditorium; b.) BCPA to Community Players Theater; c.) BCPA to Braden Auditorium; d.) BCPA to nowhere - 'twas canceled that year

• 6.) What famous celebrity has been a component of past Holiday Spectaculars, if not in person, at least in impersonation?

a.) Marilyn; b.) Jacko; c.) Elvis; d.) Ralph

• 7.) After three years of trying, the stage of the Holiday Spectacular finally was able to accommodate what come 2005?

a.) seven swans a-swimming; b.) one camel a-standing; c.) two partridges in two pear trees (just for emphasis); d.) special guest stars the Osmonds.

• 8.) Holiday Spectacular scenarist Nancy Steele Brokaw has dovetailed elements from various holiday classics and other musicals into her scripts over the years. Which of the following has she thus far studiously avoided?

a.) "A Christmas Carol"; b.) "Christmas With the Kranks"; c.) "Bad Santa"; d.) "Silent Night, Deadly Night III: Better Watch Out"

• 9.) What would a Holiday Spectacular be without angels? And where would angels be without wings? Not at Holiday Spectacular, for sure. Anyway, it takes around 500 of what to create them each year?

a.) ostrich feathers; b.) peacock plumes; c.) paper clips; d.) trick question; they hire the real thing

• 10.) Which of the following accurately describes special guest star Wally the Camel, a one-humped, scene-stealing Holiday Spectacular fixture for several years?

a.) intensely non-gregarious and anti-social; b.) hates "the thea-tuh"; c.) would rather walk a mile for a you-know instead of meet with his fans; d.) would rather spit in your face than smother you with a big velvety "mmmwaahhh!"

• 11.) Term of endearment for the consequences of Wally the Camel heeding nature's call on stage before a paying audience:

a.) "method acting" b.) "cameo appearances"; c.) "soliloquies"; d.) "going for broke"

• 12.) Number of the above bequeathed to the Holiday Spectacular by Wally over the course of his two seasons of performances:

a.) 12; b.) lost count; c.) no one brave enough to take a count; d.) "Well, I never!" - Wally

• 13.) During the course of a single Holiday Spectacular performance, around 120 of these are racked up by Santa:

a.) FAA citations en route to Braden; b.) testy reindeer commands ("move it, Dasher!," "kick it, Blitzen!"); c.) ho-ho-ho's; d.) measurable belly shakes on the Jell-O-meter.

• 14.) Just as essential to Holiday Spectacular as Santa and carols and angels on high is that atmospheric essential we variously praise and curse in real life. Yes, snow. The white stuff that decks the halls of the Braden stage is the stage brand, of course. But even so, it weighs in mightily, to the tune of how much bulk over the years?

a.) 1,000 lbs.; b.) half a ton, baby c.) 16,000 ounces; d.) a … lot

• 15.) The kilowatts of joy to the world and good will toward men generated by a single high-voltage Holiday Spectacular performance equal:

a.) even more than what's charged against you on your monthly utility bill, and that's saying something; b.) enough added warmth to give Al Gore Jr. nightmares for the next month; c.) the equivalent of 10 back-to-back viewings of "It's a Wonderful Life" (kids, don't try that at home); d.) a … lot

Answers

1.) c (or, doing the math, around 3.75 Clauses per year)

2.) a (repeated attempts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful)

3.) b (

4.) a, c (pass the Seltzer, please)

5.) c

6.) c (no offense to you Ralphs out there, of course)

7.) b

8.) b, c, d (c'mon, Nancy, there's some potential here!)

9.) a (the pluck of the draw, we guess)

10.) none; all are lies, lies, lies!

11.) b (though we understand Wally's preference is a.)

12.) a (documents are on file)

13.) c

14.) all of the above, and then some

15.) all of the above, and then some

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At a glance

What: The Pantagraph's 7th Annual Holiday Spectacular

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

Where: Illinois State University Braden Auditorium

Tickets: Adults, $22; 14 and under, $7.99

Box office number: (309) 438-5444