Albert Camus once famously remarked, “Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth.” But does this claim for the primacy of poetic sensibility apply to nonfiction events? That is the question at the heart of “The Lifespan of a Fact,” now running at Act II Playhouse in Ambler.

Ironically, the play’s provenance is more fact than fiction. In 2002, John D’Agata, a celebrated American writer, wrote “What Happens There,” an essay that explored the suicide of teenager Levi Presley, who leapt from the Stratosphere’s observation tower in Las Vegas. D’Agata embroiders the suicide to create an image of the dark underbelly of Vegas culture.

Jim Fingal, a fact-checker at the magazine “The Believer,” uncovered 100 pages’ worth of factual inaccuracies in D’Agata’s essay. (Harper’s Magazine previously had rejected it for factual inaccuracy.) Its publication was delayed, and the play is based on the book by D’Agata and Fingal, “The Lifespan of a Fact,” which records their long years of acrimonious e-mail debate.

In 2018, three writers, Jeremy Kareken, David Murrell and Gordon Farrell, turned the book into a Broadway play. In the opening scene, editor Emily Penrose gives Fingal a ho-hum marching order to fact-check D’Agata’s essay. In reality, she is more concerned with potential lawsuits, and with profiting from the emotional impact of D’Agata’s stirring narrative.

It is also Thursday, and Emily needs Fingal’s report on her desk by Monday morning. So, “Lifespan” is a ticking clock drama. And in a Sunday-night crisis, Emily is forced to fly to Vegas when she learns that zealous Fingal, a recent Harvard grad, has traveled there to confront D’Agata about his truthfulness.

Matt Pfeiffer directs a sterling cast. All three actors have been Barrymore winners or nominees. Emily is the only fully fictional character. Scripted as the usual hard-driving, New York editor, Karen Peakes rescues Emily from the stereotype. Peakes convinces you that Emily really is one tough lady, used to facing deadlines, focused under pressure and knowing when and how to put her foot down.

Adam Howard captures Jim Fingal’s earnest youthfulness. Just breaking into the magazine business, Fingal teeters between appeasing his boss and obeying his conscience. Over and over, in his encounters with Emily and D’Agata, Fingal is comically ill at ease. Still, he plows ahead with his fact-checking, convincing you as to the depth of his passion.

Ian Merrill Peakes fully inhabits D’Agata. In his subdued and world-weary way, D’Agata is as passionate as the fact-checker. His self-defense goes beyond vanity. He argues that a writer must penetrate the emotional and spiritual truth of human affairs, and that artistic license is a moral necessity. These two men pair up so well their face-off reminds you of “The Odd Couple.”

The Act II production turns “The Lifespan of a Fact” into an absorbing 90-minute show, played without intermission, part comedy and part thesis play. It might benefit from being a tad shorter because its dramatic premise is stark and unchanging. None of the characters present a character arc. The only change is that their personalities come into clearer focus in relation to the argued question.

The strength of the show lies in the actor’s comedic sensibility and the smart ambiguity of the play vis-à-vis the issue. It feels like you have watched a comical boxing match, as the two men collapse exhausted in their chairs. You think you know how “referee” Emily will rule, but you are not sure. My verdict: “split decision.”

Act II Playhouse is located at 56 E. Butler Ave. in Ambler. “The Lifespan of a Fact” will run through Nov 8. Tickets are available at 215-654-0200, or online at Act2.org.