The first production, The Man from the Sleepy Lagoon, took place in The Ship, a traditional Fitzrovian pub.

Since then Shipshape has branched out into other subject areas and other parts of London. In 2018 Tell Me the Truth about Love, its play about Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears, was performed at the Omnibus Theatre in Clapham.

Later that year the British Museum hosted the premiere of Feet of Clay, a specially commissioned drama about the life, loves and friendships of the French sculptor Rodin, with music from the period.