The word “drama” comes from a Greek term meaning a thing done. A drama tells a story by means of action and speech.

We do not know exactly when drama began. It grew out of religious ceremonies in which the life of a god was portrayed by a man or a group of men. The drama that we know today goes back to the times of ancient Greece.

In Greece the art of the drama reached great heights. The two great classes of drama, tragedy and comedy, were invented by the Greeks. In general, tragedy deals with suffering and death and has an unhappy ending. Comedy treats the brighter side of life with humor and sentiment, and ends happily.

The plays of the Greeks, known as classical drama, were written in verse. This was also true of the plays of the most important dramatists until about a hundred years ago. Today, nearly all plays are written in prose.

The Greek drama began with the worship of Dionysus, the god of wine. The plays were performed only on holy occasions. The theater was always as sacred as the temple. It was the early custom at the rites of Dionysus for a chorus of men to chant hymns in praise of the god.

There is an ancient tradition that one of the leaders of the chorus, Thespis, was the first one to impersonate Dionysus. He thus became the first actor. To this day, actors are sometimes called thespians.