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An off-Broadway play satirizes the real-life relationship of lawyers Cellino and Barnes
By
Ryan Kailath
Published Aug 6, 2024
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Jake Offenhartz / Gothamist
By
Ryan Kailath
Published Aug 6, 2024
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Most New Yorkers who know Cellino & Barnes know the personal injury firm from its subway posters, billboards, bus bench ads — and of course its distinctive jingle, 1-800-888-8888.
Now the story of the two infamous attorneys is back on stage.
“Cellino v. Barnes” opened at the Asylum Theater on East 24th Street in July, with a run slated through Oct. 13.
Eric William Morris and Noah Weisberg in "Cellino v. Barnes"
Photo by Marc Franklin
It was first staged in 2018 in Brooklyn to a sold-out run, and directors Alex Wyse and Wesley Taylor revived the production this summer.
“This is a buddy comedy. This is a silly romp,” said co-director Alex Wyse, an actor and writer whose credits include “Masters of Sex” and “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
“It’s a real in-joke for those in the tristate area,” said Wyse.
An early review from Mashable called the production “outrageous, entertaining and even a bit poignant,” while the New York Theatre Guide cautioned that the gimmick might wear thin.
Wyse and his co-director, Wesley Taylor (whose credits include acting roles on “Only Murders in the Building” and “The Good Wife”), didn’t want to spoil any details of the production — but they say it's a black comedy with parody at its heart. It draws from the real-life drama that played out in the local and national press as the real-life lawyers Ross Cellino Jr. and Steve Barnes clashed over the way forward for the firm, and ultimately split into competing businesses: Cellino Law and The Barnes Firm.
“There’s a lot of fun to be had in sussing out what is real, what actually happened and what is embellished for comedy and satire,” Taylor said. “A lot of it surprisingly did happen.”
In real life, Cellino and Barnes sued each other over issues including compensation and internal drama including decisions to employ their own family members. Barnes died in 2020 after a private plane he was piloting crashed near Buffalo, New York.
Wyse said the show’s writers, Mike B. Breen and David Rafailedes, took as a starting point the many facets of the lawyers’ relationship that were documented in court cases and the press.
The co-directors noted that the production ironically had its own sizable legal team, to ensure that its dramatization of real-life events stayed within the bounds of parody without straying into potentially defamatory territory.
“I can’t stress enough that this show is a celebration of two New York icons,” Wyse said.
Wyse and Taylor said Hollywood hasn’t come knocking yet, but they’re optimistic.
“Sometimes you’re afraid of getting too big,” Wyse said, laughing. “You know, you want to just keep it niche, keep it for those in the know.”
If your patience for a show about subway-ad celebrities is limited, the directors note that its runtime is 75 minutes, sans intermission.
“A lot of the feedback we’ve been getting is how grateful everyone is that it’s so tight and quick,” Taylor said.
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Ryan Kailath
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