.) and Menander (342-292
             B.C.) were the fathers of Comedy. There was a separate competition for
             comedy which was also dedicated to Dionysus. Tragedy was at its height in
             Greek society when that society was at its height and comedy was an outlet
             for the frustrations of society as well as a diversion for the masses.
             The theatre of Ancient Greece evolved from religious rites which date back
             to at least 1200 BC. At that time Greece consisted of tribes. In northern
             Greece there was a cult that worshipped Dionysus, the god of fertility and
             procreation. This Cult of Dionysus practiced ritual celebrations which
             consisted of alcoholic intoxication, orgies, human and animal sacrifices,
             and hysterical rampages by women called maenads. The cult's practice
             involved uninhibited dancing and emotional displays that created an altered
             mental state known as 'ecstasis'. Ecstasy was an important religious
             concept to the Greeks and they saw theatre as a way of releasing powerful
             emotions through ritual. Though it met with resistance, the cult spread
             south through the tribes of Greece over six centuries. The rites of Dionysus
             became mainstream, formalized and symbolic. The death of a tragic hero was
             offered up to god and man rather than the sacrifice of say, a goat. By 600
             BC these ceremonies were practiced in spring throughout much of Greece.
             An essential part of the rites of Dionysus was the dithyramb. The word
             means 'choric hymn'. This chant or hymn was introduced into early Greece
             accompanied by mimic gestures and music. It began as a part of a religious
             ceremony, like a hymn in the middle of a mass describing the adventures of
             Dionysus. In its earliest form it was lead off by the leader of a band of
             revelers, a group of dancers, probably dressed as satyrs dancing around an
             altar. It was probably performed by a chorus of about fifty men dressed as
             satyrs; mythological half-h...