Tyler West in Small Minded at Orlando Fringe Credit: Courtesy Photo

From the moment Tyler West emerges from a pint-sized proscenium to the strains of Randy Newman’s “Short People,” grasping vainly at a too-tall mic stand as he struggles with a footstool, you know that there’s going to be big fun and bigger ideas in Small Minded, his brilliant blend of sociological soliloquy and circus arts. West — who was wonderful as “Hank” in the national tour of Water for Elephants that was a highlight of last year’s Broadway series at the Dr. Phillips Center — was born with achondroplasia, a non-inheritable form of dwarfism. Growing up (or not, rather) in Tucson, he became obsessed with Cirque at age 14, and taught himself juggling and other sideshow skills that he ably shows off.

Thanks to a painfully woke drama teacher, West won some early attention on stage, but we feel his pain as a prejudiced professor pushes him to play the Fool instead of King Lear, despite his fluency with Shakespeare. Even as he pursues his art, studying under psychic mediums and master clowns, Tyler is torn between his need to make a living by making people laugh, and not wanting to exploit (or be exploited by) his status as a minority; as he says, other circus performers use makeup as a mask, but West can’t remove his costume at the end of the day. 

Director Cleo DeOrio helps West masterfully re-create classic comedy routines like the Keystone Kops and Donald O’Connor’s “Make ’em Laugh,” while simultaneously deconstructing the discrimination that underlies those slapstick traditions and providing a corrective lesson about an overlooked aspect of the civil-rights struggle. A haunting Humpty Dumpty pantomime performed to a Pascal Rogé recording lingers a little too long, and the chaotic ending — which involves an animated rant about Peter Dinklage and a big beach ball labeled “oppression” — gets its metaphors somewhat mixed. But those are small flaws in a show that otherwise towers tall above the average Fringe specialty show. Being a dwarf in entertainment ain’t no fairy tale, but Tyler West helps audiences face uncomfortable facts with giant-sized laughs.

Thomas West (Las Vegas, NV)
Peach Venue, Orlando Family Stage
60 minutes; 18 and up
Tickets: $15

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This article appears in Orlando Fringe 2026.