In Nice, on Tuesday, February 18, 2026, from 6:30 PM to 10 PM, the Promenade des Anglais hosted the 5th edition of the FACE’Parade, the student carnival organized by FACE 06, transforming the Promenade des Anglais into a festival of music, costumes, and colors. Free for students, the event gathered over 4,500 participants for an evening filled with DJ sets, makeup stands, photobooths, and original animations, offering a well-deserved festive break between two exam sessions.
“Between classes, exams, and tests, the FACE’Parade offers students in Nice an evening full of colors, rhythm with music, costumes, and laughter: a real breath of fresh air in the heart of the Nice Carnival!” From the moment you join the queue, the festive atmosphere is in the air. Glitter, wigs, and various costumes mix with laughter and conversations. A first group catches the eye: Emilie, 21, Kezia, 20, Isabelle, 20, Emily, 20, and Bianca, 20, all third-year law students, are made up and dressed as clowns. “We are here to dress up, have fun, and think about something else,” explains Emilie. The exams have just ended and the next ones are already approaching, but tonight, the motto is clear: take a break. “We’re in denial! Tonight, we’re not talking about studies,” exclaims Isabelle.
A little further, four Spanish mathematics undergraduates – Alfonso 20, Luis 22, Fernando 20, and Adria 23, discover the event for the first time. “To have fun, not to study!” (laughs), they spontaneously respond when asked why they are attending. Yet again, for one night, the exams take a backseat.
Behind them, Domenica, 19, a dentistry student from Ecuador, and Maia, 18, a psychology student from Chile, dressed in colorful hippie style, take photos in front of the security gates before entering. Fresh out of exams and aware that more await soon, they savor the party. “It’s very pretty,” they say. “Tonight, we decided to come,” they add enthusiastically.
A Photo Op
Once past the security measures, the heart of the FACE’Parade opens: a square scaffolding topped with the “FACE 06” sign marks the central stage in the middle of the Promenade des Anglais. Fatma, 25, a Master 2 Communication student and volunteer, coordinates with Axel and Lucas a team of 70 volunteers to welcome 2,500 students.
“The FACE’Parade is a free event that welcomed 4,000 students during the Nice Carnival. We offer a DJ stage with activities such as makeup, stilts dances, photobooths, and a soft drink bar,” explains Fatma. The stands include a soft drink bar, three makeup stands, a photobooth, and a prevention area with the French Mutuality. The crowd doesn’t dwindle: participants move from makeup, to photos, to dancing to the rhythm of the DJ sets.
Axel, 23, vice-president of FACE 06, ensures everything goes well. “We’re here for the students, but we are all students ourselves. It’s important to have fun while keeping an eye on the smooth running of the event and the morale of the teams,” he explains. Lucas, 24, president of FACE 06, emphasizes the importance of this unique event: “You have to know how to have fun when it’s time to have fun. Tonight, it was mandatory to be here.”
Alex adds: “We’ve just completed an exam and are heading towards another. You have to know how to organize your time and find a balance. These festive moments are essential: they allow us to meet people from all walks of life and have unique experiences.” For many, these moments are not just a respite: “so in a way, we are also revising. What we learn here isn’t in classes, yet it’s essential in life. You must remain human, help others,” Alex adds.
While waiting for the last DJ, we head to the four tents of FACE 06 grouping the bar, prevention, makeup, and photobooth. Énora, 18, in her first year of a dual degree in Economics and Sociology brings up the rear and invites everyone to the final photo of the evening. Each participant captures this moment, some even photographing the photo itself, to keep a souvenir.
A Music Break
Marion, 22, Belgian and Shaghayegh, 25, Iranian, second-year art students at Villa Arson, enjoy the bar for a final drink. “Tonight, we won’t be studying, we’re having fun,” they say, with glitter on their cheeks and smiles on their lips.
After the three female DJs from the Bal du Veglione it is the turn of the three DJs from FACEParade to set the dance floor on fire for our Nice students! The last DJ, Lucas, 25, alias Nemesyk, takes the stage. Having left studies to become a DJ, he mixes tonight especially for the students: “It’s always nice to make people have fun. When they dance, it’s really the best,” he says.
When the music stops, Lucas, president of FACE 06, delivers a thank-you speech: volunteers, participants, and collective energy are acknowledged. The evening draws to a close, and the students leave the Promenade des Anglais, conscious that tomorrow, they will need to return to the classroom… or the library.
And as the lights go out, with glitter still clinging to hair and hands, a final breath of music seems to whisper: “enjoy these moments, they pass too quickly… but are remembered forever.” Tonight, no one forgot how to dance between exams.
