The stages are set for Inauguration Day in Washington D.C. — but it’s hardly the swearing-in ceremony that Americans are familiar with.
The city center is on a virtual lockdown following the Jan. 6 insurrection on Capitol Hill by supporters of President Donald Trump.
Tensions are high. Tens of thousands of National Guard and other law enforcement officers are stationed in the area. Streets are blocked. High fences wrap the U.S. Capitol, White House and National Mall.
It may not be the inauguration that President-elect Joe Biden wished for — as it is also muted due to COVID-19 — but it’s expected to be the most unusual in U.S. history.
Photos from the Associated Press and Getty Images show how the already-jittery city is preparing for an unprecedented Inauguration.
Instead of parades and crowds of people, those in attendance will be limited to staff and VIPs, including Jennifer Lopez who will perform and Lady Gaga who will sing the national anthem.
Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will take their oaths of office outside the Capitol Building after the ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m.
Biden will deliver a speech before the traditional “Pass in Review” inspection of troops from all service branches.
Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Harris and second gentlemen Douglas Emhof, will later make their way to the Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Former presidents and first ladies Barack and Michelle Obama, George W. and Laura Bush, and Bill and Hillary Clinton, are expected to attend the inauguration.
Trump is not expected to attend Wednesday’s events, making him the first outgoing president not to attend his successor’s inauguration since Andrew Johnson more than a century and a half ago. Trump plans to depart from Washington D.C. on Wednesday.
Garth Brooks, the Foo Fighters, John Legend and Bruce Springsteen will perform remotely, while Eva Longoria and Kerry Washington will introduce different segments, according to the Associated Press.
Instead of an inaugural ball, actor Tom Hanks will host a 90-minute primetime TV special on Wednesday night. It will include performances by Justin Timberlake, Jon Bon Jovi, Demi Lovato and Ant Clemons.
In Washington D.C., where 25,000 National Guard troops are guarding the Capitol, White House and National Mall, Mayor Muriel Bowser is asking people to stay away.
WATCH: U.S. National Guard personnel arrive in Washington, D.C.
In the National Mall where people would normally gather to watch the Inaugural ceremony, 200,000 small U.S., state and territorial flags were placed to represent the people who couldn’t go to the inauguration due to the pandemic and security concerns.
Here is how Washington D.C. is preparing for Inauguration Day on Wednesday.
Flags are placed on the National Mall, looking towards the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial, ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
National Guard troops patrol a fenced permitter around the U.S. Capitol on January 19, 2021 in Washington, DC. Tens of thousands of National Guard troops were deployed as additional security for President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration following the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images) (2021 Getty Images)
With the U.S. Capitol in the background, a lock on anti-scaling security fencing is seen on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, in Washington as security is increased ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
National Guard troops reinforce security around the U.S. Capitol ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Capitol police walk past a poster seeking information on individuals who attacked the Capitol building, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, in Washington. Security n been heightened ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony. (AP Photo/David Goldman) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
The Capitol is seen as security preparations continue at the Capitol ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
A barrier is guarded on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, in Washington as security is increased ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Steel fencing and barb wire surround the Capitol building as security is heightened ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony, Tuesday, Jan.19, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Preparations are made prior to a dress rehearsal for the 59th inaugural ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday, January 18, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Flags are placed on the National Mall ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Flags are placed on the National Mall ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Members of the military band participate in a dress rehearsal for the 59th inaugural ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris at the Capitol, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (Erin Schaff/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
Preparations are made prior to a dress rehearsal for the 59th inaugural ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday, January 18, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
A stand-in for President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in on the podium, as a stand-in for Jill Biden looks on, during a rehearsal for the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Stand-ins for Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, left, and Doug Emhoff, walk on to the podium during a rehearsal for the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
A stand-in for President-elect Joe Biden, center, stands in the President's Room of the U.S. Capitol during a rehearsal for the 59th Presidential Inauguration on Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool via AP)
The Washington Monument and the National Mall are visible as members of the U.S. Air Force Honor Guard walk along the West Front of the U.S. Capitol at the site of the 59th Presidential Inauguration in Washington, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Federal K-9 units prepare for a security sweep in preparation for the inauguration ceremonies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021. President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president on Wednesday. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
National Guard troops reinforce security around the U.S. Capitol ahead of expected protests leading up to President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021, following the deadly attack on Congress by a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
National Guard walk near the Capitol as security is increased ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
State flags including the Tennessee state flag, in front, are placed on the National Mall ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Workers use their body weight to hold down a large American flag placed on the National Mall, with the U.S. Capitol behind them, ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Preparations are made prior to a dress rehearsal for the 59th inaugural ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday, January 18, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Preparations are made prior to a dress rehearsal for the 59th inaugural ceremony for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday, January 18, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Caroline Brehman/Pool via AP) (2021 CQ-Roll Call, Inc.)
U.S. military units march in front of the Capitol, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021 in Washington, as they rehearse for President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony, which will be held at the Capitol on Wednesday. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
U.S. Army National Guard soldiers walk along K Street near Black Lives Matter Plaza, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
