Frozen, Oklahoma, and Ain’t Too Proud are taking the stage at Shea’s Performing Arts Center as part of the M&T 2020/2021 Broadway series.

“The energy is so palpable,” said Michael Murphy, Shea’s president. “People love experiencing the theater with other people. They love laughing, they love crying, they love sharing the emotion.”

Two shows are launching their national tours for the first time at Shea’s next season: To Kill a Mockingbird and Tootsie.

“It’s a big honor for Buffalo and for Shea’s,” Murphy said. “People who are producing shows love coming to Buffalo.”

The crews will arrive about five weeks before the shows open. They’ll load in the scenery and costumes and set up the lights. Then the actors will follow, spending a few weeks rehearsing on the stage.

“Then they start doing previews and they open in Buffalo,” Murphy said. “Then they go across America on the tour.”

While the crews are here, they’ll do more than perfect their productions. They’ll stay in hotels, dine at restaurants, and hire local labor, resulting in a $3 million to $5 million economic impact per show.

“The producers love coming to Shea’s,” Murphy said. “We have a very talented crew and the fact that they also provide work for our stage hands and our wardrobe personnel and our staff is a big economic boost to Buffalo.”

Theater tax credits are another reason why the region is desirable to launch national tours.

A little more than five years ago, Shea’s Presenting Partner Albert Nocciolino and venue managers approached the state legislature.

He said if there’s a tax credit that provides millions for the film industry across the state, “How about we find our way to doing something similar for the theatre industry and letting us open Broadway tours in upstate New York.”

The move put Buffalo on the map as a theater hub.