Thearticleis devoted to thecomparativecharacteristics of thetwo mostimportantdramaticfestivals of Athens - Great Dionysia and Lenaia. The author pays special attention to the second of these holidays, as the Lenaia is an important, but still insufficiently studied part of the cultural and political life of classical Athens. Unlike the grand “international” holiday Great Dionysia, which was attended by many guests (non-Athenians), Lenaia was a local Athenian holiday. The tragedies of the famous playwrights which were staged on the occasion of the Great Dionysia were a kind of presentation for Athens on an international scale, they propagated Greek myths in their Athenian version, which was an important part of ideological propaganda in the context of the imperial policy of Athens. Lenaia was most famous for staging comedies designed for their own, Athenian, audience: most of the Aristophanes'politically acute comedies were successfully staged during the Lenaia.