CRANSTON — Erica Neves showed up at Gibbs College in her good-luck, zebra-striped stiletto heels at about 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

Hundreds of contestants wait in line to register for auditions. In front are Meline Vergne, 17, of North Kingstown; Francis Humes, 17, of Portsmouth; and Lauren Holmes, 18, of Portsmouth.

The Providence Journal / Kathy Borchers

The Warwick native was expecting a crowd. After all, Fox Providence was kicking off auditions for American Idol early Friday morning.

But there were no teeming crowds. No tent cities. No Simon Cowell sightings.

Just two other would-be Idols, a late-night mascara-and-lipstick session and a giddy, sleep-deprived take on breakfast.

“We threw Cheerios at each other,” said Neves, 24.

By morning, roughly 300 singers had showed up for the event, vying for an all-expenses paid trip to Philadelphia, where the popular television talent show will host one of seven regional mega-auditions later this month.

The turnout was well under the 1,000 or so that organizers were hoping to draw.

But the contest had plenty of the youthful exuberance and marketing glee that has turned American Idol into an entertainment juggernaut.

In the end, Alexis Brown, of Providence, won after a forceful rendition of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” popularized by Idol alumna Jennifer Hudson in the movie Dreamgirls.

“I just want to say thank you,” said Brown, 26, standing center stage in a riot of balloons, flowers and tears.

“Something like this,” she said, “I take to the heart.”

The Cranston competition was one of 71 hosted by local Fox affiliates around the country.

Winners get “fast passes,” which guarantee them priority auditions — without those pesky waits — at the regional tryouts, taking place in Philadelphia, Miami, Charleston, Atlanta, Omaha, Dallas and San Diego this year.

From there, a group of roughly 175 singers move on to Hollywood, where judges will pick 12 women and 12 men to appear on the show, now entering its seventh season.

American Idol seasons launch in January. And for the coldhearted, the show is at its best in those early days, when producers profile some of their most atonal auditioners.

Organizers of the Cranston event expected a few pitch-poor crooners of their own.

But the collection of local musicians, radio personalities and producers who served as judges said there were precious few duds.

“There’s no one that’s standing out that’s so bad that we had our own William Hung here,” said Jessica Schiano, a radio host on WPRO (92-FM), referring to a famously bad singer who auditioned for Idol a few years ago. “It was kind of disappointing.”

But Schiano and her fellow judges did speak fondly of a contestant who sang a particularly terrible and surreal version of a Jerry Vale song.

“It was like he was trying to hypnotize us and take our gift bags,” said Al Gomes, a producer who has worked with pop singer Christina Aguilera.

The judges’ Dunkin’ Donuts gift bags were but one element in the branding of Rhode Island’s American Idol moment.

There was the McDonalds “I’m Lovin’ It” registration area.

WPRO blared hip-hop from its promotional sport-utility vehicle, affectionately known as “the Booger” after its fluorescent green color.

The Paul Mitchell School in Cranston offered free twists and braids to the assembled.

Even Texas Roadhouse, the barbecue restaurant next door, got into the act — raffling off free dinners for two and waiving brightly-colored signs urging on three waiters auditioning for the show.

Alas, the servers, Margaret Dunphy (“Show Your Stuff,” the sign urged), Chris Fine (“Rock It Out”) and Ana D’Arezzo (“Next Super Star”), did not advance to the final round of 12 in the Cranston competition.

But Neves, who wore zebra-striped earrings, bracelets and belt to match her lucky heels, did get to the last competition of the day.

Her version of Alicia Keys’ “A Woman’s Worth” was not enough to claim the Idol crown.

But like the other finalists, she won a free career consultation and promises of a compact disc demo from Gomes, the producer.

In the end, she said, her long, Cheerios-inflected wait was worth it.

“I feel good,” she said. “I feel tired. But I did it.”

dscharfe@projo.com