But  Sus^rion's  visit  to  Icaria  not  only  sowed  the  seeds  of
comedy  in  Attica,  it  may  be  surmised  to  have  exercised  an
influence  on  tragedy,  for  it  was  by  a  native  of  Icaria  that  the
next  step  in  the  development  of  tragedy  was  taken :  Thespis
(about  B.C.  536)  introduced  an  actor  into  tragedy,  and  thus
made  dialogue  a  possibility.  Probably  the  l^apyoiv  still  con-
tinued to  be  the  central  figure  and  the  most  important  person,
for  the  Greek  word  for  actor — v7roKpiT'i]<i,  "answerer" — seems
to  imply  that  the  actor's  business  at  first  was  confined  to
answering  occasionally  when  addressed,  and  to  playing  up
generally  to  the  k^apyoiv,  the  leading  man.  But  even  this
folk-drama,  this  rustic  performance  by  two  men  on  a  cart —
"dicitur  at  plaustris  vexisse  poemata  Thespis" — was  so  suc-
cessful at  the  country  Dionysia,  that  after  a  time  the  per-
formers ventured  to  appear  in  the  market-place  of  Athens  on
the  occasion  of  the  Lensea — the  festival  which  took  place  a
month  after  the  country  Dionysia,  and  was  to  the  town  what
the  country  festival  was  to  the  villages.  The  new  form  of
entertainment  met  with  the  approval  of  the  Pisistratidse,  and
was  taken  under  their  patronage.  To  encourage  it,  a  prize  was
offered  for  competition  between  three  choruses  and  their  leading
men,  and  the  drama  thus  became  state  established  at  Athens.
