They developed during the 10th and 11th centuries from tropes to the Introits for Christmas and Easter, which were written in the form of a dialogue (question and answer form).
From the 14th to the 16th centuries, liturgical drama developed into the mysteries or mystery plays, coming under secular sponsorship and using the vernacular. They used music only incidentally, for processions, fanfares, and dances, occasionally including plainsong, popular songs, etc.
It is chiefly from these plays that European drama developed.