ap photo arnival King Momo, Wilson Dias da Costa Neto, holds the key of the city as the Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes, right, applauds during a ceremony marking the official start of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Wednesday.

RIO DE JANEIRO — Rio de Janeiro’s Mayor Eduardo Paes on Wednesday ceremonially handed control of the city to King Momo, a ritual representing the upheaval of the status quo — but it remains to be seen how much post-pandemic partying is in store during the first Carnival in two years.

Samba schools’ elaborate floats and feather-festooned dancers will parade between packed bleachers starting Wednesday night. As for the more than 500 street parties that usually run wild through the city, City Hall refused to grant them authorization, claiming it lacked sufficient time to prepare.

That dissonance has sparked debate over whether City Hall is stifling Carnival’s essence, and if denizens should seize the streets as their own. Some organizers couldn’t care less what is allowed; they will turn out anyway — part party, part protest — and Mayor Paes, a confessed Carnival enthusiast, has said he will refrain from deploying the Municipal Guard.

“City Hall won’t impede people from being in public spaces, from celebrating, but it’s impossible that it happen at such (large) size,” Paes said in response to a reporter’s question after giving King Momo the city’s key.

His statement echoed comments on Sunday while visiting samba schools that were putting finishing touches on their floats. The competing schools were corraled from the streets into the Sambadrome in the 1980s, and became Rio’s quintessential Carnival display for tens of thousands of attendees willing to shell out for tickets. Their parades will run through Sunday night.