PROVDIDENCE – FirstWorks was chosen as one of five organizations to participate in a pilot Islamic arts program, which will provide three music and film performances in Providence.

The program, called Caravanserai: A place where cultures meet, is an “artistic and cultural exchange meant to showcase the diversity of contemporary Islamic societies through their art and culture,” a news release said.

It is funded with $1 million from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art and managed by Arts Midwest.

Caravanserai will begin in Providence in November, with a shared musical performance with Qawal Najmuddin Saifuddin & Brothers, Tari Khan Ensemble, and Powerhouse Drumming and Voices of Lahore and Karachi. In February, the program will showcase Pakistani filmmaker Ayesha Khan, and in March, Arif Lohar featuring Sanam Marvi is slated to perform.

Four other organizations will participate in the program, including: The Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire, Littleton, N.H.; Artswego, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, N.Y.; Monmouth University, West Long Branch, N.J.; and the Myrna Loy Center, Helena, Mont.

“Caravanserai builds on FirstWorks’ mission to connect Providence audiences with peak experiences in the arts,” said Kathleen Pletcher, executive artistic director of FirstWorks.

“Each of the three ‘mini-festivals’ FirstWorks will present this season features virtuoso artists, acclaimed in their native land but unknown to many [in the U.S.] in exhilarating performances, workshops and open dialogue. This is a once-in-lifetime opportunity to experience 700-year-old traditions intersecting with contemporary expressions in a euphoric experience, distant from the turmoil of the present,” she said.

The first performance is scheduled for Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. in the RISD Auditorium. For more information, visit first-works.org or call 401-421-4281.