Pete and Chasten Buttigieg went to see a gay Broadway play and received an emotional standing ovation

Pete Buttigieg

Free from the shackles of a presidential campaign, Pete and Chasten Buttigieg are catching up on their Broadway shows – and got an emotional response from the audience at The Inheritance.

The former presidential candidate made his first public appearance since ending his history-making run for president last week – as he was spotted in the audience alongside husband Chasten at the play on Sunday night.

The play they picked to see could not be more profound, with Matthew Lopez’ play The Inheritance, which focuses on a group of gay men living in modern-day New York, a generation on from the AIDS epidemic.

Audience at The Inheritance applaud Pete and Chasten Buttigieg.

The poignancy of their presence was not lost on the audience, with both Buttigieges receiving a standing ovation before the opening curtain as they took their seats.

One fan tweeted: “This just goes to show you just how powerful of a campaign Pete and Chasten ran. They deserve every standing ovation they can get.”

Another audience member wrote: “Saw The Inheritance this afternoon and I’m left with a sense of deep gratitude for the gay men who have come before me and paved the path for what it means to be a gay man in America today.

“It was made even more poignant by the attendance of Pete Buttigieg and his husband.”

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Couple are living their best life after ending year-long presidential campaign

After ending his Presidential candidacy, Buttigieg is now officially out of work – with his term as Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, having ended in January.

He is finding fun where he can get it, though – and is set to enter the world of late-night entertainment as a guest host for Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday.

Pete Buttigieg and husband Chasten Buttigieg speak with the cast and company backstage at the hit play The Inhertance on Broadway

Pete Buttigieg and husband Chasten Buttigieg speak with the cast and company backstage at the hit play The Inhertance on Broadway (Photo by Bruce Glikas/WireImage)

He told Today: “In the immediate term, we’re going to be travelling a little bit, thanking supporters, and Chasten and I are looking forward to some time away. Then I’ll come back and make myself useful in new ways, but we’re going to have some fun first!

“On Thursday I’m going to be guest-hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and we’re very excited about that.

“They’re lining up a great slate of guests, Sir Patrick Stewart’s coming on and I’m very excited about that. I think it’s going to be fun.

“The thing about coming off a presidential campaign is you have been focused on one thing, and one thing only. It’s nice to be able to zoom out and come back at life.”