Theatre of Dionysus

The theatre of Dionysus is associated with the sacred cult of Dionysus or Bacchus, one of the most revered gods in the Greek pantheon. From time immemorial the Greeks held performances in his honor. Greek tragedy, one of the greatest cultural contributions the Greeks bestowed to the western world, had its origins in the worship of Dionysus. This theatre was the center for the reenactments of the works of the greatest tragedians, Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides.

The orchestra measures 90 feet in diameter and is located on the SE slope of the acropolis. It was remodeled over many centuries up to the Empire. The present theatre dates to the time of Nero. The ruins you see today are not what the theatre originally looked like in ancient times. Originally there were wooden benches until they were redone in stone sometime in the late 4th Century B.C.

http://www.sonic.net/~hellenik/theatre.html

Background Information of Dionysus

    Dionysus was the god of wine, agriculture, fertility and was the patron of theatre. He is the son of Zeus and a mortal woman. His mortal mother was killed by Zeus after being tricked by Hera who was unhappy of their affair. At this time Dionysus was still in his mothers womb, so Zeus sewed Dionysus to his thigh and was born by Zeus himself. But Hera had the newborn Dionysus killed by a couple of Titan assassins who tore him to bits and  boiled the pieces of his body in a great cauldron. Luckily he was resurrected by his grandmother (though in some accounts it was by his half sister, Athena) and was entrusted to the goddess Persephone to keep him safe. The minor deity is known for driving his followers mad, his sexuality and drunkenness. If a Greek god were to throw a party, Dionysus would definitely be on the guest list.