STAGE Act

Summary: Support Theaters in America Growth and Expansion Act or the STAGE Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the expensing of the costs of qualified film and television productions, to: (1) extend through 2015 provisions allowing such expensing, (2) allow such expensing for the costs of certain live theatrical productions, and (3) provide for the tax treatment of dispositions of an interest in a live theatrical production as a passive activity. 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Support Theaters in America Growth 
and Expansion Act'' or the ``STAGE Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPENSING OF QUALIFIED PRODUCTIONS.

    (a) Extension.--Subsection (f) of section 181 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``December 31, 2013'' and 
inserting ``December 31, 2015''.
    (b) Application to Live Productions.--
            (1) In general.--Paragraph (1) of section 181(a) of the 
        Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting ``, and 
        any qualified live theatrical production,'' after ``any 
        qualified film or television production''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 181 of such Code is 
        amended--
                    (A) by inserting ``or any qualified live theatrical 
                production'' after ``qualified film or television 
                production'' each place it appears in subsections 
                (a)(2), (b), and (c),
                    (B) by inserting ``or qualified live theatrical 
                productions'' after ``qualified film or television 
                productions'' in subsection (f), and
                    (C) by inserting ``and live theatrical'' after 
                ``film and television'' in the heading.
    (c) Qualified Live Theatrical Production.--Section 181 of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f), as amended by 
        subsections (a) and (b), as subsections (f) and (g), 
        respectively, and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(e) Qualified Live Theatrical Production.--For purposes of this 
section--
            ``(1) In general.--The term `qualified live theatrical 
        production' means any production described in paragraph (2) if 
        75 percent of the total compensation of the production is 
        qualified compensation (as defined in subsection (d)(3)).
            ``(2) Production.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A production is described in 
                this paragraph if such production is a live staged 
                production of a play (with or without music) which is 
                derived from a written book or script and is produced 
                or presented by a commercial entity in any venue which 
                has an audience capacity of not more than 3,000 or a 
                series of venues the majority of which have an audience 
                capacity of not more than 3,000.
                    ``(B) Touring companies, etc.--In the case of 
                multiple live staged productions--
                            ``(i) for which the election under this 
                        section would be allowable to the same 
                        taxpayer, and
                            ``(ii) which are--
                                    ``(I) separate phases (within the 
                                meaning of section 469(g)(4)(B)) of a 
                                production, or
                                    ``(II) separate simultaneous 
                                stagings of the same production in 
                                different geographical locations (not 
                                including multiple performance 
                                locations of any one touring 
                                production),
                each such live staged production shall be treated as a 
                separate production.
                    ``(C) Exception.--A production is not described in 
                this paragraph if such production includes or consists 
                of any performance of conduct described in section 
                2257(h)(1) of title 18, United States Code.''.
    (d) Effective Dates.--
            (1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        apply to productions commencing after December 31, 2013.
            (2) Commencement.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the date 
        on which a qualified live theatrical production commences is 
        the date of the first public performance of such production for 
        a paying audience.

SEC. 3. DISPOSITIONS OF INTEREST IN THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS AS PASSIVE 
              ACTIVITY.

    (a) In General.--Subsection (g) of section 469 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
            ``(4) Special rule for interest in qualified live 
        theatrical productions.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In the case of an interest in a 
                qualified live theatrical production (as defined in 
                section 181(e)(1)) as a passive activity--
                            ``(i) each phase of such production shall 
                        be treated separately for purposes of this 
                        subsection, and
                            ``(ii) the termination of any phase of such 
                        production in which the taxpayer holds an 
                        interest as a passive activity shall be treated 
                        as a disposition of such taxpayer's entire 
                        interest in such passive activity.
                    ``(B) Phase.--For purposes of subparagraph (A), the 
                term `phase' with respect to any qualified live 
                theatrical production refers to each of the following, 
                but only if each of the following is treated as a 
                separate activity by the taxpayer for all purposes of 
                this title:
                            ``(i) The initial staging of a live 
                        theatrical production.
                            ``(ii) Subsequent additional stagings or 
                        touring of such production which are produced 
                        by the same producer as the initial staging.
                            ``(iii) Disposition of copyrights, 
                        licensing rights, or subsidiary rights in 
                        connection with such production.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply 
to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2013.