Rev. Rul. 57-382

Advice has been requested whether the amount paid for admission to a costume ball is exempt from the tax on admissions by section 4233(a)(9) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 under the circumstances described below.

A chamber of commerce sponsored a costume ball commemorating a bicentennial with many of the guests attending in colonial attire. All the profits from the ball will be used for marking historical sites. There was no particular event of historical significance portrayed.

Insofar as it is applicable here, section 4231(1) of the Code imposes a tax, to be paid by the person paying for such admission, upon the amount paid for admission to any place, if the amount paid for admission is in excess of 90 cents. Section 4233(a)(9) of the Code provides that no tax shall be imposed under section 4231 of the Code on amounts paid for admission to an historical pageant, if the proceeds therefrom are used exclusively for the improvement, maintenance, and operation of such pageant, and if no part of the net earnings thereof inures to the benefit of any private stockholder or individual.

The mere wearing of period costumes to a commemorative social affair is not construed to be a portrayal of an event of historical significance. Accordingly, in the instant case, it is held that, since there was no staged pageantry portraying an event of historical significance and the proceeds were not `used exclusively for the improvement, maintenance, and operation' of an historical pageant, the exemption from the tax on admissions provided by section 4233(a)(9) of the Code does not apply. Therefore, the tax on admissions applies to the amount paid for admission to the costume ball, if such amount exceeds 90 cents for a single admission.