Denmark Vesey - in Art

In Art

Martin Delany's 19th-century novel Blake referred to Vesey, as did Dorothy Heyward's drama Set My People Free. Vesey was the subject of a 1939 opera named after him by novelist and composer Paul Bowles. Vesey is also mentioned in the 1974 novel "Roots" by Alex Haley.

Several PBS documentaries have included material on Denmark Vesey, particularly Africans in America and This Far By Faith.

Vesey was the subject of the 1980s made-for-television drama, Denmark Vesey's Revolt, in which his character was played by actor Yaphet Kotto. Vesey's character also appeared in the 1991 TV movie Brother Future, in which he was played by the then-too young Carl Lumbly, who was 40 years old at the time.

A CBS Radio Workshop drama written by Richard Durham, Sweet Cherries in Charleston, broadcast August 25, 1957, tells the story of the aborted 1822 rebellion.

Denmark Vesey is the name and basis for a character created by Orson Scott Card in The Tales of Alvin Maker, a series of books which detail an alternate history of America. The character Denmark emerges in Book Five, Heartfire, in which his slave rebellion comes under threat by mistakes made by Alvin’s brother, Calvin Miller/Maker. Vesey's conspiracy also formed the basis of John Oliver Killens' brief novella, Great Gittin' Up Morning. He appears briefly in John Jakes' Charleston, where he is mischaracterized as a mulatto.

Vesey is mentioned along with Gabriel Prosser in the Public Enemy composition, "Prophets of Rage", appearing on their 1988 album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back.

After Denmark, a play by David Robson, is a contemporary take on the historical Denmark Vesey. In it, a young editor (who may be related to Vesey) travels to the Deep South to confront questions of racism and identity. The play first appeared at the 2008 Great Plains Theatre Conference. A workshop production by Yellow Taxi Productions is planned for the fall of 2008.

Joe McPhee's composition Message from Denmark, featured on the 1971 album Joe McPhee & Survival Unit II at WBAI's Free Music Store, is dedicated to Denmark Vesey.