EVERETT — Aimee Martin’s first clue that something was wrong came when the Bee Gees cover band her family planned to see at the New Everett Theater no longer appeared on the theater’s website.
Once she confirmed the show was canceled in September, she began to seek a refund for the $129 in tickets paid by her parents.
As of the Oct. 10 planned show date, she said she’s still waiting for her money.
Others have shared similar stories — all involving Theatre and Concert Consulting, an entertainment agency run by the former manager of the Historic Everett Theatre, Curt Shriner.
Shriner worked to produce and promote events through the company until he announced in a May 2 press release that “unforeseen financial circumstances” have led to the cancellation of all Theatre and Concert Consulting shows.
He did not specify what “unforeseen financial circumstances” meant at the time. However, in the wake of the cancellations, public records show Shriner filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy on May 30.
It was “additional theatre costs, low ticket sales, loss of additional revenue” that led to the bankruptcy declaration, Shriner said in an email Oct. 1.
The cancellations have surprised at least three ticket holders, who said they were left in the dark about refunds, and the lead singer of a Pearl Jam cover band, whose act was canceled with little notice, he said.
Shriner said in an Oct. 1 email that all tickets were listed as non-refundable and that he has given out $24,457.61 in refunds. When asked to provide a record of these refunds, he did not respond.
‘Nothing we can do’
The New Everett Theater, formerly known as the Historic Everett Theatre, currently acts as a rental venue, according to the theater’s website, with event-specific aspects like ticketing, production and overall management handled by the event’s promoter or sponsor.
Since the cancellations, the New Everett Theater’s owner, a Bellevue real estate broker and investor, Johnny Phan, said the theater’s reputation has taken a hit and suffered financial losses from unpaid rental fees.
Without access to who bought tickets or their contact information, Phan said he doesn’t know who wasn’t notified or refunded until they call the theater or show up for a canceled show.
“There’s nothing we can do at this point,” Phan said. “We didn’t take anybody’s money, and we can only offer a different show for them to earn their business.”
People can bring copies of the canceled tickets to the theater to be redeemed for another show, Phan said.
For Martin, the credit was a nice gesture.
“I do appreciate that Johnny is going to give us credit and that he is trying to make amends in that regard,” she said.
Two days after she was supposed to see Bee Gees Gold Tribute, Martin spoke with Shriner, who reportedly told her to contact Stripe and her bank to discuss a refund, she said.
“It’s frustrating because we’ve been going to the Everett Theater for a long time,” Martin said.
Stripe advertises itself as a payment processing platform. An FAQ section of its website reads, “Stripe is unable to issue refunds on behalf of businesses. To initiate a refund, you’ll need to contact the business directly.”
Shriner did not answer a follow-up question about why he referred a customer to Stripe.
“I just want people to be able to enjoy this beautiful theater,” Martin said.
For Bianca Kamnitzer, how the cancellations were handled rubbed her the wrong way, she said.
Kamnitzer received an emailed notice that the Richard Marx show she bought tickets for in April was canceled the week before the performance, she said.
“No offer of a refund or even addressing that money back was due,” she said in an email.
She had spent $207 on three tickets, which would appear on a bank statement as payment to Theatre and Concert Co, according to her virtual ticket confirmation shared with The Daily Herald.
Her two emails asking for a refund were met with no response, Kamnitzer said. Now, she said she doesn’t know “where to start with getting my money back.”
‘Never profit-oriented’
Before Phan became the theater’s owner on June 1, 2025, Shriner was the theater’s manager. His brother, Craig Shriner, was the primary owner of the venue.
Following Phan’s acquisition, Shriner told The Daily Herald that he would continue working with the New Everett Theater as a producer and promoter for previously booked events.
As a promoter, Shriner added that he would be taking a financial risk.
For a 2025 Haley Reinhart concert, Shriner said he put up $20,000 to pay the performer and rent the theater from Phan. The show had reportedly only sold 317 of the 800 seats in the lead-up to the event, according to previous reporting.
Theatre and Concert Consulting was formed in 2022, according to state filings, and lists Shriner under his legal name, John Shriner, as owner of the LLC.
When asked what his role as a producer and promoter of events at the New Everett Theater entailed, Shriner responded with “Let’s just say that the arrangement didn’t work out for either party,” he said in the Oct. 1 email. “My master plan was always to provide a place for local talent and a place where residents could come for a great price to see a great show. My late wife and I had this plan, which was never profit-oriented.”
In a statement of current monthly income filed alongside other bankruptcy documents in May, Shriner reported $224.05 in past show profits from the Historic Everett Theatre. For income from Theater and Concert Consulting, he reported a draw in February and March for $300 and $500, respectively.
Shriner reported his income from the company was $0 for the remaining documented months and that the average monthly net income from the company was $133.33, bankruptcy documents showed.
In a section of the filings for listing nonpriority unsecured claims, or debt not backed by collateral, Shriner is listed as owing $10,000 to Phan for “past due rent,” according to bankruptcy documents.
As of the time of filing, boxes were checked indicating the claim is unliquidated and disputed. This indicates the exact amount of debt may not be known, and the debtor disputes the amount owed with the creditor.
Shriner did not respond to a question about the $10,000.
‘Out of our hands’
Diego Zegarra’s Pearl Jam cover band, Corduroy, had already booked their flight when he got the news just days before their May 9 show.
It came after Shriner, who was producing the San Francisco band’s show at the New Everett Theater, reportedly said pre-sale for tickets was low, and if the band couldn’t cut a check for the show’s around $2,000 in expenses, the show was off; Zegarra said he refused to pay.
“Usually, walk-ins are bigger than pre-sale. Everybody knows that,” Zegarra said. “But we never heard from him again.”
After Corduroy posted on social media on May 8, alerting fans that the Everett show was postponed due to unforeseen circumstances, Zegarra said they received a message from a fan that Theatre and Concert Consulting had a different story.
“The band has made the decision to cancel this show,” read the email sent to ticket holders and shared by Zegarra with The Daily Herald.
Corduroy’s post also said ticket holders who didn’t want to wait could contact the venue or Shriner’s website, Phenix Events, for a refund. The fan told the band that Shriner never responded to her refund request, and she ended up disputing the charge with her credit card, Zegarra said.
The cancellation “was totally out of our hands,” Zegarra said Wednesday. Shriner canceled the show one or two days before they were supposed to perform, he added.
Shriner said it was Phan who instructed him to cancel the show.
“The owner later told me that the band had said that, due to poor ticket sales, both parties had mutually agreed to cancel the show and potentially try again at a later date,” he said in an email Thursday. “At some point afterward, the owner asked me whether I had called the band. I told him no. They were his contacts, not mine, and I did not believe it was my place to reach out to someone else’s contacts without authorization.”
Theatre and Concert Consulting started promoting Corduroy’s show after Phan referred the band to Shriner due to his previous experience as the theater’s manager and connection to the local music scene, Zegarra said.
“Johnny was very helpful. He was so willing to work with us, and I think the mistake was adding Curt to the equation,” Zegarra said.
Shriner followed up with the Thursday email to say that after checking his emails, he “never talked to them, and they said they were in communication with Johnny.” In the lead-up to the show, the band only sold 34 tickets, he added.
When Corduroy returned to Washington on Oct. 3 for 90s Flannel Fest in Moses Lake, Zegarra said fans there came up to the show asking about the canceled show.
“I felt awful,” he said about hearing fans’ disappointment face to face.
Zegarra still hopes to come back and put on a show for Everett, he said.
Editor’s note: A public document search showed one of the unsecured claims was for $500 for attorney fees owed to Deno Millikan Law Firm, PLLC. Kent Millikan is the grandfather to Jenna Millikan and a founding partner of the firm until he retired. Jenna Millikan was not aware of this before beginning work on the story.
Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan
