Elevating Arts & Culture Through Strategy and Support.
We bring together the artistry of the stage and the structure of the council, where bold visions meet powerful frameworks.
Whether you’re crafting a new program, pursuing major funding, or navigating production from dream to delivery, we help you design, plan, and lead with clarity and confidence.
At Stage & Council Consulting, we are more than strategists; we are artists, producers, cultural leaders, and community builders who’ve walked the path ourselves. Our consultants bring decades of combined experience leading transformational initiatives in the arts and culture sector, not only building successful programs and securing six-figure funding within their own organizations, but also guiding countless others to do the same.
We’ve served on panels, run institutions, launched festivals, designed lighting plots, built tech riders, shaped policies, and more-all while staying deeply grounded in the communities we serve.
Whether you’re an emerging artists or a grassroots collective, we meet you with care, clarity and cultural fluency.
We are your advisors, collaborators and champions-ready to help fund, manage, and produce your creative impact with confidence.
Rooted in culture. Built for impact.
Where creativity and strategy converge
meet our founder
maia maiden
Award-winning arts leader, VISIONary, cultural strategist, curator & educator
Hi, I’m Maia. I started Stage & Council Consulting because I’ve lived the same journey many of my clients are on: navigating grants, developing programs, managing projects, juggling logistics, and trying to grow something meaningful in the arts and culture space. Over the past 20+ years, I’ve worn just about every hat: artist, educator, festival producer, arts administrator, grant maker, mentor—and now, consultant.
My work has always been about building what didn’t exist yet; whether that’s a space to uplift underrepresented artists and art forms, a strategy to strengthen a cultural institution, or a roadmap to get powerful ideas funded and off the ground. I’ve led initiatives that reached thousands, sat on panels that decided hundreds of grants and fellowships, developed curriculum and criteria, and helped folks fund their work rooted in creativity and community.
What makes my approach different is that I see both the big picture and the fine print. I bring a rare blend of creative brilliance and analytical precision (did I mention that I am a scientist too and have taught at the college level) nurtured through a life shaped by art, purpose, and systemic impact.
I understand how to write a compelling application and build the systems to manage it. I know how to light a stage and how to plan the production from start to finish. I know how to build groundbreaking initiatives designed for success and impact-and much more. Most importantly, I care deeply about the people doing this work, because I’ve been one of them my whole life.
If you’re looking for a collective of consultants who get your vision and knows how to help you bring it to life—you’re in the right place.