While women in fifth-century Athens were largely absent from the public arena, they held center stage in Greek drama, which was a centerpiece of civic pride. How do we understand the powerful presence of female characters in a society in which real women were seldom seen or heard? We will read tragedies by Euripides and Sophocles—some well-known, like Medea, and others less widely performed—as well as two comedies by Aristophanes, Lysistrata and Women at the Assembly, and consider whether these imaginary women fulfilled or upended the gender expectations of the Athenian audience. No knowledge of Greek literature or history is required.