(Photo by scorchedearth)

The 96th annual National Christmas Tree Lighting is set for late November, but hopeful attendees can try to snag their tickets beginning tomorrow, October 18.

The lottery of free tickets for the lighting ceremony on November 28 opens at 10 a.m. EDT and closes the following Monday at the same time. Those interested can apply either online on the Recreation.gov site or by calling 877-444-6777 to be entered. Winners of the lottery will be notified on October 29.

Started by President Calvin Coolidge in 1923, the event’s star is a living Colorado blue spruce from Virginia, which lives year-round in President’s Park. Surrounding it are 56 smaller trees that are traditionally decorated with “one-of-a-kind” ornaments that represent all 50 U.S. states along with territories and D.C.

The National Park Service has not released a list of expected performers for this year’s event. Last year, the festivity was hosted by of American television host Kathie Lee Gifford and actor Dean Cain and included performances by the Beach Boys and Wynonna.