Most shrubs are taller than 3-4 feet unless pruned to that height. I suggest you get some of the larger Hostas. Many will grow 3 or 4 feet tall and they will flower. In a 2 or 3 years they will hide most of your fence. They thrive in mostly shade conditions and very little care

http://carolynsshadegardens.com/2011/05/30/larger-hostas/

I have seen giant hostas but I never realized that they were that tall, except for the flower stalks. If they could hide my fence it might be a good solution.

What about growing climbing hydrangeas through the fence? I have that on some of my chain link fence in shade. You need to either tie in the stems or thread them through the fence as the vine grows.

I can attest to the fact that the shrub Eleutherococcus [Acanthopanax] sieboldianus 'Variegatus' does well in dry shade. It can grow taller than 4 feet but could easily be trimmed to keep it in check.

I had one of those, and I lost it. And by that I honestly don't know if it's still there, but I forgot where I put it, or if it died. I've looked for it, and I expect it would be findable, but I can't find it.

One of those great gardening mysteries.

Chelone obliqua, and it's a strong grower too.

Aruncus dioicus

If you can get your hands on a copy of Native Plants of the Northeast by Donald Leopold, you''ll find two pages of ferns and fernlike plants, grasses and grasslike plants, wildflowers, vines, shrubs and trees that tolerate shade.

Some of my shrubs are:

Shrubs: calycanthus, leucothoe (which is evergreen, tiny cream flowers in early spring), lindera benzoin (spicebush - obligate host for spicebush swallowtail butterfly), sambucus (elderberry), rhododendron & azalea.

If you want to fill out with perennials/groundcovers, some of my favorites are wild ginger, cimicifuga (the 4-5' tall flower racemes glow in the slanting rays of late afternoon sun coming through the tree canopy), dicentra eximia and d. cucullaria (fern-leaf bleeding heart and Dutchman's breeches, respectively), crested iris, tiarella.

Not mentioned in Leopld's list (most of these are not native), but among my favorites are heuchera (coral bells - all kinds of foliage colors!), aucuba ('Gold Dust' has evergreen leaves flecked with gold), variegated Solomon's Seal (it does spread, but it easy to pull out), sarcocca (sweet box - small broad-leaved evergreen with tiny but very fragrant flowers in late winter), epimedium (check variety - some are clump-forming, others are runners), and pulmonaria.