[2] On 24 October 1906, the society staged the first Lithuanian opera Birutė written by Petrauskas based on the melodrama by Gabrielius Landsbergis-Žemkalnis.

[2] Petrauskas was searched by the Tsarist police due to his support of the revolution (he composed revolutionary songs);[9] his brother Kipras was arrested and spent about half a year in prison.

[6] There he met Lithuanian student Zigmas Skirgaila [lt] and they decided to depart to the United States in June 1907.

[2] Petrauskas' activities in the United States can be categorized into three groups: leading choirs and organizing Lithuanian cultural evenings, teaching at music courses or so-called conservatories that he founded, and performing in concerts.

For example, opera Birutė was staged at the International Theater with the hired orchestra conducted by Theodore Thomas.

[6] In addition to Lithuanian works, Gabija also staged such international classics as Faust, Rigoletto, Lucia di Lammermoor.

He was a tenor and his repertoire included operatic arias by western and Russian composers, various romances, and his own compositions.

His major article Iš muzikos srities (From the Field of Music) was first published in Lietuva [lt] and then as a separate booklet in 1909.

[2] He returned to Lithuania in summer 1912 and performed in various cities including Vilnius, Linkuva, Rokiškis, Kėdainiai, Ukmergė, Zarasai,[2] as well as Tilsit in East Prussia.

[6] The concerts were organized by Martynas Yčas as a cover for his political campaign for the September 1912 elections to the Russian State Duma.

[17] The repertoire included arias by Ruggero Leoncavallo, Stanisław Moniuszko, Charles Gounod, Giuseppe Verdi as well as Lithuanian songs.

He performed Lithuanian folk songs with his brother Kipras and his student Antanas Sodeika [lt] and staged a couple of operettas in Šiauliai.

[6] He attempted to organize a music school and a theater group with which he staged opera Birutė and operetta Vaikas ar mergatė?

[19] He received a state pension of 500 litas and spent time writing a dictionary of music and a study of orchestras,[21] but they were not published.

He was buried in the churchyard of Dusmenys [lt] next to his parents; his remains were moved next to his brother Kipras in Rasos Cemetery in Vilnius in 1969.

In 1939, a bust of Petrauskas by sculptor Bronius Pundzius [lt] was unveiled near the Kaunas State Musical Theatre.

[21] In 1977, a memorial museum dedicated to Mikas and Kipras Petrauskas was opened in their former apartment in Žaliakalnis neighborhood of Kaunas.

The plot is based on the medieval legend about the love between Birutė and Grand Duke of Lithuania Kęstutis recorded in the Lithuanian Chronicles.

The opera is based on the Lithuanian folktale Eglė the Queen of Serpents which was developed into a five-act drama by Aleksandras Fromas-Gužutis.

Petrauskas added an additional act to further explore the meeting between Eglė and her future husband Žilvinas the Serpent.

[2] The opera, modified and adapted by the composer Jonas Dambrauskas [lt], premiered in Kaunas on 15 February 1939 under the shortened title Eglė.

Most of the plot is taken from everyday life and pokes fun at people's vices, but a few make broader societal commentaries.

[2] Petrauskas based it on a vaudeville by Aleksander Fredro which makes fun of a rich landlord and his supposed illnesses.

It became popular due to its subtle humor, educational moral, small number of characters, melodious music.

In more complex songs, he also preserved the folk melody, but introduced variations in the texture, voice, and sometimes the harmony, enriched the choral texture with polyphonic means (examples: "Oi, motule ma", "Siuntė močiutė", "Oi, tu ieva", "Kur tas šaltinėlis").

[2] Petrauskas also expanded some songs by using imitations, stretto, tonality (examples: "Dega ugnį", "Aš palikau motinėlę", "Gieda ryliuoja").

He was also the first to introduce choral accompaniment, especially in songs with a lively tempo (examples: "Parsivedžiau mergelę", "Suktinis", "Oi, tu ieva", "Pasėjau kanapę").

Following Russian examples, Petrauskas wrote piano accompaniment for about 100 solo and duet songs.

[2] A separate group is so-called revolutionary songs written based on texts by Julius Janonis, Jonas Krikščiūnas-Jovaras, Juozas Baltrušaitis-Mėmelė [lt], Karolis Račkauskas-Vairas [lt] that promoted freedom and love for the homeland, and encouraged rising up against the oppressors.

Petrauskas also harmonized popular revolutionary songs "La Marseillaise", "Warszawianka", "A las Barricadas", etc.