Well, when you say tropical, do you mean tropical as in something that will need to come inside as soon as temps get down to 32 degrees? It's a bit late in the season for that.

If you mean something that is hardy, but looks rather tropical, that opens up a whole range of shrubs. Basically I would think you would want something that is evergreen, broadleaf with maybe some variegations or maybe flowers - or maybe just handsome foliage.

For a mostly shady spot you could try the following shrubs that should be hardy in your region (these are some of my favorites):

Viburnum 'Chindo'
Aucuba japonica
Cleyera (Ternstroemia gymnanthera)
Cammelia japonica
Variegated Osmanthus heterophyllus (looks like a holly)
Evergreen Euonymous japonica 'Silver King'
Fatsia japonica (stays smaller)
to name a few.

Thx for the list... I decided to try the Fatsia Japonica, I think it'll look great in that location. Is there anything I need to do special to protect it in the winter??