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Following the 2010 Munich world premiere of his opera, The Tragedy of the Devil, Peter Eotvos decided to make some revisions to it. Though following the plot of the original piece, written by the German playwright Albert Ostermaier, there are some key points where the new material completes or even reconsiders the original one. While in the original play the main protagonist is Lucifer, in Paradise Reloaded the spotlight falls on to a different character, Lilith, the first wife of Adam. In this new piece, Peter Eotvos explores the hypothetical question: what would have happened if our culture which is explicitly based on the Bible had chosen Lilith to be the ancestress of mankind, instead of Eve? In the first scene Lilith is being expelled from Paradise and forced to live in the desert as a demon mother. She returns to bear a child to Adam - this newborn could free her from her demonic exile. However, Adam's second wife, Eve, thwarts Lilith and the conflict between the two women forms the drama of this new piece. Lilith was created by God in the same way as Adam; they were equal - whereas Eve was created from Adam's rib. Lilith represents free will, power and conspiracy, while Eve stands for femininity, purity and self-sacrifice. The structure of the opera is similar to The Tragedy of Man by Imre Madách, in which the human couple are cast out from Paradise and guided by Lucifer through the past, present and future. In Paradise Reloaded, Lilith's intentions define the course of events; she eventually attains her goal but at the end of the story Adam still does not choose her as his partner. In this piece, Adam is not choosing between life and death but rather between two women who have different outlooks on life. His choice determines the fate of the generations to come. The conclusion promises a new beginning for all characters - hence the Reloaded in the title - in a new Paradise, but this will no longer be the same as the one they left.

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The axis is the conflict between Lilith and Eve and an exploration of what might have happened, if the first wife of Adam was not thwarted in her efforts to reconcile with him. Lilith, the exiled demon-mother attempts to reload Paradise, and yet loses again. Eötvös, a composer as highly regarded, as he is at times controversial, in this, one of his 12 operas, draws equally on the Viennese tradition of Schoenberg and Berg and on post-war serialism. The fascinating libretto is the work of the Munich-based writer, Albert Ostermaier. The three protagonists and a cast of other characters are accompanied by the Hungarian Radio Symphonic Orchestra, guest-conducted here by Gregory Vajda. This same podium was shared in the past by such titans, as John Barbirolli, Antal Doráti, István Kertész, Otto Klemperer, Neville Mariner and Leopold Stokowski. Biblical proportions, indeed!

     —Robert Thomas , theWholeNote

Eötvös writes beautifully for female voices, and the most alluring moments are those given to soprano Rebecca Nelsen's Eva and Annette Schönmüller's Lilith respectively. Eric Stoklossa's pure-toned, naïve Adam can't really compete. Holger Falk's Lucifer is an appealing thug, his best scenes soundtracked by rumbling timpani and brass glissandi. There's a remarkable quartet near the opera's coda, before all ends with an exquisite monologue from Lilith. There's so much beauty in Eötvös's score: it's compelling as a piece of abstract vocal music. But please can BMC put an English libretto on their website? This is a studio recording, so we get an immaculate performance, free of bumps, coughs and splits. The packaging, as is usual from this source, is appealing. And the notes also tell us that Albert Ostermaier is the goalie in the German authors' football team.

     —Graham Rickson, theartsdesk.com

In spite of the work's darker elements, Paradise Reloaded is surprisingly funny at times--a 'divine comedy,' if you will.

     —Joe Cadagin, operanews.com