A lesson in censorship

Unmistakable integrity ignites Bryan Davidson and Kim Dunbar’s “Banned and Burned in America,” now premiering at the Greenway Court Theatre, whose proximity to Fairfax High seems apt. Under Ayana Cahrr’s visceral direction, this exploration of censorship’s national implications conveys acute topical purpose and kinetic cohesion.

Inspired by Diane Ravitch’s book “The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Children Learn,” “Banned” begins with bookworms lounging about Victoria Bellocq’s stylized set. The prologue ends on a slammed cell door, courtesy of Fritz Davis’ sound plot.

An FBI-hounded librarian (Annette Murphy) carries “Banned’s” treatise, which emerges amid excerpts from targeted novels. Nancy Garden’s “Annie on My Mind,” Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Dalton Trumbo’s “Johnny Got His Gun” and Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” are folded into corresponding scenarios.

Authors Davidson and Dunbar surmount the academic contours with notable imagination. Amy Munroe Peterson and Tara Platt play out the teen lesbian courtship of “Annie,” while an incendiary mob and free-speech activists battle over its subject matter.

The Act 1 climax combines “Mockingbird’s” trial and a scholastic disciplinary hearing, with intractable teacher Mary Cobb and stereotype-resistant student Donovan Knowles silencing the house.

Act 2 moves from riveting to electrifying. In the magnificent “Johnny” sequence, Issac Bright is beyond praise as the war-torn protagonist’s id. Tangelia Nichole Rouse and Kiersten Morgan are axiomatic as “Caged Bird’s” abused child and renegade reader, respectively.

Pierson Blaetz, Jon Caligiuri, Gary Carter, Edythe Davis, David Haley, Diana Elizabeth Jordan and Penelope Lowder complete the seamless ensemble. Their group dexterity culminates in an unforgettable invocation of banned classic titles, culled from the 100 schoolbooks most frequently challenged by parents and pressure groups between 1990 and 2000.

Here, as everywhere, Cahrr’s direction exerts invisible control. Besides Bellocq’s and Davis’ contributions, Jeremy Pivnick’s lighting, Naila Aladdin-Sanders’ costumes, April Larson’s videos and Robert F. Trucios’ music are staunch assets.

Everyone’s efforts result in the most ingratiating consciousness-raiser since “Nickel and Dimed” at the Taper -- catnip for inquiring minds, required viewing for closed ones.

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‘Banned and Burned in America’

Where: Greenway Court Theatre, 544 N. Fairfax Ave., L.A.

When: Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.

Ends: Nov. 1

Price: $18-$20

Contact: (323) 655-7679, Ext. 100

Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes