The Week’s guide to what’s worth watching

The best programs on TV this week

American Experience: Stonewall Uprising

On June 28, 1969, New York City police raided a gay bar in Greenwich Village—a routine occurrence in an era when homosexuality was widely regarded as a mental illness. But for the first time, patrons at this bar, the Stonewall Inn, fought back. Through interviews with participants on all sides, this acclaimed documentary brings to life “the Rosa Parks moment of the gay-rights movement,” as well as the widespread oppression that triggered it. Monday, April 25, at 9 p.m., PBS; check local listings

Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel

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Correspondent Andrea Kremer explores the little-known world of “mini” cheerleading, in which very young girls perform stunts that belie their ages as they seek a national title. Other segments will include a profile of Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins and an interview with Paralympic track champ Marlon Shirley. Tuesday, April 26, at 8 p.m., HBO

Cinema Verite

Diane Lane, James Gandolfini, and Tim Robbins give first-rate performances in this dramatization of the making of the groundbreaking 1973 TV docuseries An American Family. The film relives the on-camera fracturing of the Loud family, captures Southern California mores of the ’70s, and documents the birth of reality TV’s manipulations. Tuesday, April 26, at 9 p.m., HBO

Independent Lens: Marwencol

In 2000, Mark Hogencamp was beaten into a nine-day coma by five men. Emerging with a shattered memory, he began building a miniature World War II–era town in his backyard. Playing with toy figures in the place he called Marwencol, Hogencamp created an epic narrative, documenting it with photographs that caught the attention of the art world. This documentary explores the dual lives of his imagination and reality, between which he eventually had to choose. Tuesday, April 26, at 10 p.m., PBS; check local listings

Masterpiece: South Riding

An appealing performance by Anna Maxwell Martin (Bleak House) highlights this handsome three-part drama about a feisty headmistress at a school for girls in Depression-era Yorkshire. Martin’s heroine confronts hidebound attitudes and social injustice as she entertains a chance at romance with a brooding landowner in Masterpiece’s adaptation of a 1936 Winifred Holtby novel. David Morrissey and Penelope Wilton also star. Sundays, May 1–15, at 9 p.m., PBS; check local listings

Other highlights

Seized and Sold: The Madoff Auction

Thousands of items that belonged to convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff are sold at an auction intended to aid victims of white-collar crime. Monday, April 25, at 10 p.m., National Geographic Channel

South Park

Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s foul-mouthed cartoon tykes return for a 15th season of bawdy, libertarian-flavored satire. Wednesday, April 27, at 10 p.m., Comedy Central

The Office

After seven seasons, Michael Scott (Steve Carell) bids farewell to his co-workers in a special 50-minute episode. Will Ferrell portrays his replacement. Thursday, April 28, at 9 p.m., NBC

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