Joe Biden walked arm in arm with Jill Biden on Sunday night, smiling for the cameras as they attended the opening Othello, starring Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal.
The ‘date night’ is the former president’s first high profile public appearance since Biden offered to help the struggling Democrats was rejected.
Dressed in a tuxedo and accompanied by Jill in a sleek teal dress, the Bidens posed for a photo on a Manhattan rooftop before the show.
The former first lady posted it to her Instagram with the caption: ‘Date Night!’
Othello is a juggernaut on Broadway. With Washington and Gyllenhaal sharing the stage in Shakespeare’s brutal tale of betrayal and jealousy, the play has shattered records by pulling in $2.8 million in a single week – making it the highest-grossing Broadway play in history.
Washington, now 70, called the experience ‘the most excited I’ve been this century.’ Gyllenhaal, 44, told reporters, ‘I’ve worked my whole career for this moment.’
The production, set in a dystopian near-future and layered with modern themes like PTSD, has transfixed critics and audiences alike, with the Bidens among them.
But for many Democrats, 82-year-old Biden’s curtain call in public did not generate feelings of nostalgia, but rather rub salt into an open wound.
Just days before the couple’s theater outing, Biden privately urged new DNC chair Ken Martin to let him help offering to raise money, headline rallies, and fight back against Trump’s sweeping dismantling of policies his administration had put in place.
Former President Joe Biden smiled for the cameras he and Jill attended the opening night of Broadway’s Othello
Dressed in a tuxedo and accompanied by Jill in a sleek teal dress, the Bidens posed for a photo on a Manhattan rooftop before the show captioning it: ‘Date Night!’
Biden made his first high-profile public appearance since quietly offering to help the Democrats recover from their 2024 collapse – an offer that appears to have fallen flat
The response was tepid at best. According to sources close to the meeting, Martin listened politely, but no commitments were made and no fundraisers were scheduled.
Internal polling and interviews with Democratic operatives suggest Biden’s impact has plummeted since November’s election loss.
An NBC News poll found only 27 percent of registered voters held a favorable view of the Democratic Party – the lowest figure since polling began in 1990. Only 1 percent of Democrats said Biden represents their core values.
In the two months since he left office, Biden has remained mostly quiet, dividing time between Delaware and Washington, working on a memoir, taking meetings, and making calls.
According to multiple sources, he’s expressed no regret about running in 2024 but privately believes the party mishandled his exit and failed to unite quickly enough behind Kamala Harris.
Now, as President Trump barrels ahead with a flurry of executive actions, gutting environmental protections, reversing immigration reforms, and cutting health programs, Biden has offered to become the voice of resistance – yet no one asked him to.
A major Democratic fundraiser, Alan Kessler, told reporters: ‘There are plenty of people who still love Joe Biden. But it’s time to move on.’
Jill Biden has also quietly offered to help raise money, according to people close to her. ‘She’s prepared to help in any way she can,’ one source said.
The play has shattered records by pulling in $2.8 million in a single week – making it the highest-grossing Broadway play in history
Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal are seen at the Broadway revival of Othello
But the signals from party leadership are clear – the Bidens are not part of the strategy.
While the Biden family sees public service as a lifetime duty, many Democratic strategists now view them as a reminder of a painful chapter best left behind.
Trump continues to mention Biden or his family and has done so more than 400 times since Inauguration Day – about seven times a day.
He continues to reference Biden’s ‘failures’ blaming him for inflation and foreign conflicts, and even terminated Secret Service protection for Biden’s adult children, Hunter and Ashley, without warning.
‘We still very much are fixing so many of the problems created or started by the Biden administration. It’s important to remind the American people and media why these problems exist,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Biden has declined to engage and not made any public statements nor given any interviews.
For many, Biden’s curtain call in public did not generate feelings of nostalgia, but rather rub salt into an open wound
Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal are seen on stage during the curtain call for the opening night of Othello on Broadway on Sunday night receiving a warm reception from the audience
For some Democrats, Biden’s reappearance is both touching and complicated.
‘He deserves the applause,’ said DNC Vice Chair Jane Kleeb. ‘He is beloved by the party and beloved by the voters.’
Longtime Democratic strategist Donna Brazile believes Biden should keep quiet.
‘It makes no sense for Joe Biden to respond to Donald Trump,’ she said to NBC. ‘The American people are not looking backward; they’re looking forward.’