Packed for Trump’s inauguration indoors, awkwardness abounds

As for seating charts, that was a tricky question.

There’s only room for about 800 seats inside the Capitol rotunda, so when Donald J. Trump’s inauguration was hastily moved inside, that meant no one would make it to the The inside was going to have to sit cheek to cheek.

And what a fascinating dramatis personae, all sardined together. There were the many members of Mr. Trump’s dynastic clan; the billionaire characters who populate his colorful entourage; foreign leaders; former presidents; and the political enemies Mr. Trump had defeated.

All of this produced an extravaganza of surreal visuals and interactions. Former President Barack Obama sits inches from Dana White, the CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks with Susie Wiles, Mr. Trump’s new chief of staff. The Democratic establishment sitting among the Silicon Valley overlords who just turned against them and are now desperately trying to endear themselves to the MAGA establishment.

It was all terribly annoying at times. Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and former Vice President Kamala Harris sat impassive — one staring at the ground, the other straight ahead — while Mr. Trump, inches away , complained of the “many betrayals that took place” during this period. the last four years.

When Mr. Trump announced that he would rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, Mrs. Clinton began shaking with laughter, even as other Democrats around her kept their heads down. (After his speech, Mr. Trump addressed a room full of supporters elsewhere in the Capitol and snapped: “Hillary, she didn’t look very happy today.”)