Why is the Greek Theater so Important to Western Thought, Culture, Politics and Art?

The importance of Greek theater in western culture is very obvious, the origins of Greek drama are debated and may never be known for sure, but it is thought that they developed out of a form of ritual worship that involved a chorus of men, possibly dressed as horses, connected with the vegetation god Dionysus. Thespis, from whose title arrives the term 'thespian' for someone involved in acting, is supposed to be the man responsible for giving the first speaking role possibly to the leader of the chorus ...