Explaining why he owes back taxes, William Ivey Long, one of the busiest costume designers on Broadway, explained: “Freelance is not for sissies.”
Long took a break from outfitting Joan Rivers for a trip to London to tell me, “I’m a Virgo, so I know every dime that’s not there. I wake up in the morning and make lists of my lists, so it’s sort of humiliating.”
Long — whose credits include “The Producers,” “Hairspray” and “Crazy for You” — currently has “Bullets Over Broadway,” “Cinderella” and “Cabaret” on the boards.
According to public records, the designer owes $59,198 in property taxes on the Tribeca condo that houses his design studio. He owes another $43,002 to the IRS.
“I paid all my employees’ payroll taxes. I just didn’t pay my own. I’m the last in the life boat,” the North Carolina native said. He has repayment plans with the authorities.
Part of the problem is Long does a lot of pro bono work for nonprofits. “No one I know can resist small dance companies,” Long said.
Quoting from John Guare’s “Six Degrees of Separation,” Long said, “It’s hand to mouth on a higher plateau.”