The notion of anonymity

Many plays are written by authors and performed by performers who, for various reasons, are unknown or prefer to be anonymous or to hide their identity in certain instances.

Were the names of authors are unknown, they are mostly listed as "Anonymous", but if the authors simply want to hide their identities, they may make use of a number of techniques, e.g. the use of a pseudonym or nom de plume, the omission of a name altogether, or the use of a phrase to indicate something like local authorship.

Similarly of course, performers and other theatre and film practitioners have for centuries employed stage names to hide their identities or to make them sound more acceptable, mysterious, artistic, etc.

For a discussion of the issue of anonymity and its implications, see the Wikipedia entry on "Anonymity" at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymity

South African examples

Pseudonyms

Among the exmaples of a pseudonym (usually referred to as a skuilnaam in Afrikaans) that have been used by playwrights in South Africa over the years are:

Francis Jill Morwenna

Niggie van Eitemal ("Niece of Eitemal"

Ou Knolkool

Paul de Roubaix or Paul Roubaix

Descriptive phrases as indications of local authorship

Besides omitting to mention an author altogether or using a pseudonym, a number general phrases have been used over time to identify as a local personality.

In Cape Town for example, one finds examples such as "A Gentleman of the Cape" (1858), "A Gentleman of Cape Town" (1862), "A Young Lady of Cape Town" (1870),