Stichomythia

Stichomythia is a technique in verse drama in which single alternating lines, or half-lines (called hemistichomythia), or occasionally pairs of alternating lines (called distichomythia), are given to alternating characters. It typically features repetition and antithesis. The term originated in the theatre of Ancient Greece, though many dramatists since have used the technique. Etymologically it derives from the Greek stikhos ("row, line of verse") + muthos ("speech, talk").