Nonsense Nicholas Rudall! The word "Hypocrite" (υποκριτής) has nothing to do with answering, or responding, or answering back. Its meaning is very clear: υπο (under) +κριτής (judge), thus an actor, because he judges (also interprets) beneath a mask, a ubiquitous prop for the ancient Greek stage. The words you are possibly thinking of are words that begin with "α" as in αποκρίνομαι, and ανταποκρίνομαι deponent verbs. Not a word used on the tragic stage. Also no theater that I know of could seat any more than, say, 15,000 people! Initially there was an actor: One, Thespis. There was never a chorus only. Thespis and the villagers behind him sang dithyrambs all the way to Athens when Thespis would get up on a raised platform, which became the skene and the villagers stays below, at the orchestra, where they danced and sang as the script dictated. They became the chorus which later was limited to sometimes 50, but mostly only twelve. Aristophanes, of course had a different arrangement.
