The History of Greek Theater Twenty-five hundred years ago, 2 thousand years before Shakespeare, theater was born in Athens, Greece. The ancient Athenians created a theater culture between 600 and 200 BC. They created plays that are still considered among the greatest works of art in theater. The earliest days of western theater remain obscure, but the oldest surviving plays come from ancient Greece. The theatre of Ancient Greece evolved from religious rites that date back to at …showed first 75 words of 362 total…

…showed last 75 words of 362 total…it came about in the 4th and 5th centuries BC when Athens was bustling with radical ideas like democracy, philosophy, mathematics, science and art. This led the Athenians to ask themselves what was the role of men in this world, and tragedy was the answer to their question. They believed that man should live for honor and fame, his action was courageous and glorious and his life would climax in a great and noble death.