The recent announcement that the second season of "The Prancing Elites Project" will premiere on Jan. 19 didn't signify that it was in the can - not by a long shot, to judge from the excitement Saturday inside the historic Mobile Saenger Theatre.
The Mobile-based dance team and the crew gathering footage for its popular Oxygen series continue to be seen around town. For example, team leader Kentrell Collins and a companion had a lunchtime conversation on camera one day last week at Pizzeria Delfina on Dauphin Street, for. But such appearances are small potatoes compared to the second annual "Prance 2 the Beat" competition held at the Saenger.
This is a significant development in the world of the Elites. Early in Season One of "The Prancing Elites Project," a whole episode was devoted to the inaugural "Prance to the Beat" competition. The premise was that the Elites, as gay men, were sometimes seen as intruders into the female-dominated world of "J-setting" dance and were excluded or made to feel unwelcome at some dance competitions. So they created their own event, open to conventional female teams and male squads alike.
The likelihood is that Saturday's event at the Saenger will provide the grist for an episode of the upcoming season. And if a spoiler-free sneak peek is any indication, fans will notice some differences.
For one thing, where last year's competition was held in the perfectly respectable conference-center environment of the Abba Shrine Center, this one moved into the considerably swankier setting of a 1920s movie palace. The bigger stage allowed for some bigger production, and some of the competing teams, not just the Elites themselves, definitely took advantage, deploying props and multimedia elements.
For another, viewers might actually get to see more of the dancing. As an AL.com review of last year's "Prance 2 the Beat" episode noted, the season's jam-packed, quick-cut half-hour format gave a sense of the dancers' looks and moves, but not of the overall flow of their choreography. The upcoming season, however, expands to an hour-long format, according to Oxygen. Hopefully, that'll allow for more time on the dancing itself. (If so, groups such as the Adeeva Tigerettes, the Port Arthur Honeybees and the Blazing Cheeetahs will give viewers plenty to look at.)
In some ways, Saturday's event had the feel of any dance competition: The audience seemed to consist mostly of dance teams plus friends and family. The junior varsity division included many preteen children, and the master of ceremonies took care to keep the audience mindful that they all deserved support.
But the Prancing Elites' celebrity and confidence brought an entirely different level of energy to the proceedings. Naturally, the quintet made a grand entrance, and the troupe also presented at least one very impressive large-scale number between rounds of competition. The volume and intensity of the ovations they got from the audience would have been the envy of many more conventional stars who've performed on the Saenger stage.
Outside in the lobby, Collins took advantage of a lull in the action to see how things were going on at the merch table. ("Keep Calm and Prance On" shirts appeared to be the hot item.)
The Elites' captain said he expects crews to continue gathering new footage for several more weeks. But then, of course the Season 2 premiere will be looming, with the accompanying promotional whirlwind picking up speed.
"It's a lot going on," Collins said.