Sam Morril’s ‘The Errors Tour’ bringing stand-up comedy to Richmond
Comedian Sam Morril backstage at a show. Photo courtesy of Matt Salacuse.
Dylan Hostetter, Executive Editor
The historic National Theater will host stand-up comedian Sam Morril on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 7:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. The show is part of his state-spanning “Errors Tour,” a name meant to evoke — and possibly be confused with — Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour,” according to Morril.
This new tour comes on the heels of his last comedy special on Amazon Prime, “Sam Morril: You’ve Changed,” which released on July 9, 2024. “You’ve changed” served as Morril’s sixth stand-up special in a career that has spanned the last 20 years. Morril began comedy at the age of 18.
“I think I was too dumb to be scared,” Morril said. “It’s like learning a language super young, you just kind of get used to being on a stage and you’re not really that scared.”
Morril said he initially found ways to connect with a range of audiences. Older crowds were curious of his youthful opinion, and young people liked him because they were the same age.
As with many New York comics of his generation, he found a range of influences. The brevity of Rodney Dangerfield and Dave Attell’s jokes and especially the social commentary of Greg Giraldo were major influences on his work, according to Morril.
“I felt like he always led with the joke first as opposed to the message of anything. He made sure it was funny first before every pandering with social commentary, which I don’t see a lot of comics being able to do,” Morril said. “And he played down his intelligence in a way that I thought was really smart.”
Morril was at the forefront of a movement in comedy that saw comedians posting their content for free to online platforms such as YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. After shopping around a new special to networks and finding no buyers, Morril decided to post it for free on YouTube.
“I think there was a period of people who just said, ‘Well, if HBO doesn’t buy this hour, then I’m gonna either keep doing the hour and drink and get bitter or start a new hour and have a backlog of all this material,’ Morril said. “I had the luxury of posting it for free.”
Though older stand-ups were initially skeptical, Morril said he saw the online audience as a “new generation.”
“A lot of comics from an older generation called me crazy when I said I was going to do it, especially because I had TV specials before,” Morril said. “And I talked to some guys who were like, ‘You don’t get nothing for a special,’ and I said, ‘Incorrect, I’m actually getting less than nothing because I’m paying for it.’”
Morril’s new model proved successful though, his self-produced COVID-19 pandemic specials garnered over 3 million views. His previous Comedy Central specials have even found success on the platform, with a combined 15 million views.
“I’m very lucky because the YouTube thing worked,” Morril said.
Like many other comedians, Morril leverages his online success into tours such as the one touching down at The National. Fans that are used to seeing him through their screens at home can now see the comedian live, with a brand new hour of material — material that all started with an initial idea, according to Morril.
“You kind of have an idea, and if you’re like me, I’m pretty nervous. I’m like, ‘Shit, I gotta get cooking on this,’” Morril said. “You build it. You hopefully have a decent seven or eight minutes, and that turns into 10, then you’ve got 15. I know some comics who don’t tour until they have a new 45. I can’t really write that way. I need a trial and error approach.”
Morril said he spends time in clubs like New York’s famous Comedy Cellar developing these new ideas through a series of “workout shows.”
“Usually crowds now are pretty sophisticated to what the process is and how comedians have to turn over. I think if they’re a real fan, they’re kind of appreciative that you’re trying to keep turning over new,” Morril said.
With “The Errors Tour,” Morril said he intends to include many of his tried and true topics, including social commentary, his dating life and even a story about visiting the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam.
“A lot of stuff that’s just kind of current. And there’s always going to be some stories and personal stuff,” Morril said.
His upcoming appearance at The National is not the first time Morril has performed stand-up in Richmond. His past performances in Richmond have been positive, according to Morril.
“They’ve been good crowds,” Morril said. “They laugh about their Confederate statues. You’ve got to. They’ve been good to me there, so I’m grateful for that.”
Information on ticketing and tour dates is available at sammorril.com and at the thenationalva.com.
