Haruka Ayase (綾瀬 はるか, Ayase Haruka, born March 24, 1985 in Hiroshima prefecture) is a Japanese actress and singer. In 1999, she successfully passed a Horipro audition. Haruka first achieved widespread recognition for her starring roles in the short film Justice; in 2004 she rose to stardom as Aki in the TV series Crying Out Love, In the Center of the World. On March 24, 2006 she released her first single, titled “Period” (ピリオド Periodo), the lyrics of which were written by Kaori Mochida from Every Little Thing and Takeshi Kobayashi. Kobayashi also composed and arranged the music, as well as producing the single. She has also released two photo books: Birth in 2001 and Heroine in 2004.
