<P> The ancient Greek drama was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from c. 700 BC . The city - state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and military power during this period, was its center, where it was institutionalised as part of a festival called the Dionysia, which honoured the god Dionysus . Tragedy (late 500 BC), comedy (490 BC), and the satyr play were the three dramatic genres to emerge there . Athens exported the festival to its numerous colonies and allies in order to promote a common cultural identity . Only men were allowed to play female parts . </P> <P> The word τραγῳδία (tragoidia), from which the word "tragedy" is derived, is a compound of two Greek words: τράγος (tragos) or "goat" and ᾠδή (ode) meaning "song", from ἀείδειν (aeidein), "to sing". This etymology indicates a link with the practices of the ancient Dionysian cults . It is impossible, however, to know with certainty how these fertility rituals became the basis for tragedy and comedy . </P> <P> The classical Greeks valued the power of spoken word, and it was their main method of communication and storytelling . Bahn and Bahn write, "To Greeks the spoken word was a living thing and infinitely preferable to the dead symbols of a written language ." Socrates himself believed that once something was written down, it lost its ability for change and growth . For these reasons, among many others, oral storytelling flourished in Greece . </P> <P> Greek tragedy as we know it was created in Athens around the time of 532 BC, when Thespis was the earliest recorded actor . Being a winner of the first theatrical contest held in Athens, he was the exarchon, or leader, of the dithyrambs performed in and around Attica, especially at the rural Dionysia . By Thespis' time, the dithyramb had evolved far away from its cult roots . Under the influence of heroic epic, Doric choral lyric and the innovations of the poet Arion, it had become a narrative, ballad - like genre . Because of these, Thespis is often called the "Father of Tragedy"; however, his importance is disputed, and Thespis is sometimes listed as late as 16th in the chronological order of Greek tragedians; the statesman Solon, for example, is credited with creating poems in which characters speak with their own voice, and spoken performances of Homer's epics by rhapsodes were popular in festivals prior to 534 BC . Thus, Thespis's true contribution to drama is unclear at best, but his name has been given a longer life, in English, as a common term for performer--i.e., a "thespian ." </P>

Who were the actors in ancient greek theatre