Powerpoint - not just for text!

I hear people telling me that they cannot stand Powerpoint. They've been on a course and the leader has stood in front of a screen whilst text whizzes in, then read out exactly what's showing on the wall. "Death by Powerpoint" it's often referred to.
Powerpoint can do so much more, and I love using it to create animations for school plays.
At Christmas the lower school were presenting Roald Dahl's "Jack and the Beanstalk". I built the backdrop - using PP - and had growing beanstalks, falling bones, flying birds and all sorts of other delights in it. It was received very well. Parents thought it was wonderful, the kids loved it, and some people even thought we had had it made professionally (very flattering). Upper school asked for something similar for their carol concert and so had "snow" falling.
Now it seems I've given myself a great big ball and chain. Upper school have a summer concert based around Pirates and I've been asked to create the backdrop, so I'm currently working on making the illusion of a pirate ship travelling across the waves. It's a bit rough at the moment - the images need tidying up, but it looks like this so far; Download a_pirates_life_for_me.pps