The Carnival Parade of Lights Spotlights Trailblazer Heroines

For the first time in the 153-year history of the Carnaval de Nice, women are leading the parade.

At the 2026 Carnival Parade of Lights, one curated parade float after another celebrated this year’s theme « Vive la Reine ! », putting on full display the multi-dimensional power and impact of women, big or small : Activist. Artist. Muse. Educator. Fighter. Lover. Mother. Daughter.

Leading the charge on the brightly lit concourse is La Reine Gaïa depicted as Mother Earth whose own body sprouts forth vines and leaves as if the very veins that nourish the brown of the earth and its children, the people. While she effortlessly holds the weight of the world in one hand with such care and delicacy, she balances the Frog King (Le Roi), still in its amphibian form, with the other. Her head turns back and forth between each hand, maintaining equal balance and care like that to a child and the world. It’s exactly what a Mother would do, unnoticed but deeply felt.

Closely following behind is the Frog King, now mid-transformation from animal form to that of a human. The contrast of his boyish face filled with expression of marvel and innocence opposite his body still in frog form subtly hints what it is that a Mother does – she teaches, guides and shows her children the possibilities of the future.

Completing the Royal Court are Les Jumeaux Bâtisseurs (The Builder Twins). The young princess and prince, equal in age, height and stature, are depicted with tools that symbolize not only the building of the floats behind them but the building of a brighter future.

Representing the city of Nice and its region is Nissa la Bella, portrayed as a cheeky young woman. Towering over the cityscape and port, she holds a peel (a baker’s tool to slide baked goods in and out of the oven) while coquettishly raising her skirt. Here, she is in full control of her body, seductively alluring merchants and visitors but never allowing them to cross as the peel is raised high to serve as a constant reminder that she too can fight and assert her boundaries.

The float of Les Femmes Savants (The Learned Women) highlighted scientists Marie Curie and Jane Goodall. Polish-born Curie serves as one of the few women interred at the Panthéon in Paris for her scientific work with radiation earning her two Nobel Prizes in two different categories. Pioneer anthropologist and primatologist Goodall reminded spectators of the value of curiosity and passion for animal welfare. The inclusion of the two renowned scientists remind us of the progress women’s liberation has come, and how much more it has to go.

Equally as important as science are the arts, and Les Muses prominently profiles the bust of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo with her trademark eyebrow and crown of flowers. Known for her politically and emotionally charged art composed within elements of nature, Kahlo is a true representation of beauty and complexity.

Now imagine being in a room of notable doers and shakers comprised of Simone Veil (politician and former President of the European Parliament), Simone de Beauvoir (philosopher and writer), Olympe de Gouges (18th century playwright and creator of The Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen in 1791), Rosa Parks (American Civil Rights activist), Angela Davis (American Black activist), and Narges Mohammadi (Iranian human rights activist). In Les Combattantes (The Fighters), the women gather under the solidarity of sisterhood, while the American beacon in the form of the Statue of Liberty (a gift from France in 1886).

Described by the carnival committee as a “reflection on feminine archetypes — both seductive and frightening” is the float display Et pique ton cœur (And pierce your heart). Here, the Black Widow is personified as a dangerous seductress and yet a reminder of the complexity of nature.

Equally eliciting from spectators both astonishment, marvel and fear is the Tribe Queens float. Strong female warriors from across the globe — Roman, African, Japanese, and South Asian — these are the warriors protecting their homes and country. 

Fast forward to 2026, Anti-Eros is a reclamation of women’s voices in the film industry. Marked by the #MeToo movement, Thelma and Louise (characters from the 1991 film) have ousted male toxicity in the forms of Gérard Depardieu and Harvey Weinstein who are now crying over the edge of a cliff. 

In the whimsical Même pas peur (Not Even Afraid), cartoon characters in the form of strong female leads such as Elsa (Frozen), Pocahontas, Mulan, and Princes Fiona (Shrek) take their fighting stances while Princess Peach (from the video game Super Mario Brothers) rotate from her tower as a lookout. Gone are the helpless damsel in distress as these characters remind our rising leaders of young women that they too can be main characters.

In Voce Forte, influential entertainers are on display in the forms of American music artist Beyoncé, American-born French national treasure Joséphine Baker and global cinema stars Marilyn Monroe (American), Brigitte Bardot (French), and Claudia Cardinale (Italian). 

Closing the parade is Toutes pour une (All for One). The committee describes the representation of the float as:  “The anonymous, the famous, those from the ends of the earth, those who are silenced, those who we meet every day, those we will never see again, those who will grow up. They are All. They are are Unique.”

Featuring a large rouged set of lips and protest signs and megaphones, the float is a statement that women are no longer quiet and stand in solidarity with other women to speak up and out.

Just like how it started, the Corso Carnavalesque Illuminé ended with streamers and confetti filling Place Massena, but this time in celebration and unity in just how important acknowledgment and representation are. Now that Queen has led the carnival, let us hope that the theme of women empowerment will remain as a structural foundation in carnivals to come.

The 2026 Carnaval de Nice «Vive la Reine ! » continues through 1st of March with additional showings of Corso Carnavalesque Illuminé, Les Batailles de Fleurs, and culminates with the cremation of the king and fireworks. For more information, visit NiceCarnaval.com

PHOTO CREDITS

• All photos courtesy and © Marcus Gualberto, all rights reserved