The Week’s guide to what’s worth watching

last updated 8 January 2015

Great Performances: Dance in America,

Wolf Trap’s Face of America

This special features highlights of music and dance pieces—with influences ranging from jazz to country—commissioned by the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. The goal is to foster preservation of national parks, and settings include Yosemite, Kitty Hawk, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave National Park. In high-def where available. Monday, April 21, at 10 p.m., PBS; check local listings

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Segments include an interview with the Los Angeles Angels’ Torii Hunter, who rose from a difficult childhood to become a star center fielder; an investigation into the death last year of minor-league baseball coach Mike Coolbaugh, killed by a foul ball; and a profile of Lee Benson Jr., who is trying to restart his once-promising basketball career after more than eight years in prison. Tuesday, April 22, at 5 p.m., HBO

Two back-to-back episodes of this series about environmental change study the world’s water supply. “Dangerous Catch” shows how rampaging baboons in Ghana and sulfurous ocean fumes off the coast of Namibia point to the effects of overfishing, while “Dirty Secrets” probes the ways in which freshwater contamination is damaging striped bass, seabirds, and, ultimately, humans. Edward Norton hosts. Wednesday, April 23, PBS; check local listings

Digital restorations of two seminal silent films by French director Abel Gance debut as part of TCM’s “Lost & Found” film series. J’Accuse (1919), the first major anti-war film, has a memorable climax in which thousands of dead rise from the battlefields of World War I. The tragic romance La Roue (1923) broke ground in editing, lighting, and cinematography. New orchestral scores accompany both. Sunday, April 27, at 8 p.m., Turner

Tom and Ray Magliozzi—also known as Click and Clack, wisecracking hosts of NPR’s long-running Car Talk—embark on a lighthearted journey with a serious purpose: to learn about the next wave of automotive technology. Their quest takes them from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit to Boston’s AltWheels Festival to Reykjavik, Iceland, where the buses run on hydrogen. Along the way they learn about producing ethanol from plant wastes; plug-in hybrid vehicles that use ordinary household current; the Tesla, a battery-powered car that is both fast and stylish; and other innovative alternatives to their beloved but inefficient gasoline-powered engine. John Lithgow narrates. Tuesday, April 22, at 8 p.m., PBS; check local listings